Shaken Baby Syndrome: Simple Review Article
Sawsan Hassan Abdullah Hashim *
Faculty of Medicine, Northern Border University, Arar, Saudi Arabia.
Haneen Obaid Alanazi
Northern Border University, Saudi Arabia.
Reham Arif A. Alanazi
Northern Border University, Saudi Arabia.
Rahaf Meshal Lafi Alanazi
Northern Border University, Saudi Arabia.
Rasil Naif Muhalhil
Northern Border University, Saudi Arabia.
Afnan Hamdan Owayn Alanazi
Northern Border University, Saudi Arabia.
Amer Meshal H. Alanazi
Faculty of Medicine, Northern Border University, Arar, Saudi Arabia.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
Shaken Baby Syndrome (SBS) occurs in infants when the head is subjected to excessive acceleration and deceleration. Guthkelch first identified SBS when he noticed that infants with subdural hematoma did not always have gross markings, indicating the possibility of a baby shaking. The rotational force pushes the brain against the skull, causing various types of head and neck injuries. Ophthalmologic testing for retinal haemorrhages and ocular fundus, which can rule out SBS, is one of the tests for SBS. Immunohistochemical staining for -amyloid precursor protein (-APP) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) accurately identify brain injuries and bleeding, resulting in a more accurate diagnosis of SBS. SBS symptoms are shared by other etiologies, making it difficult to determine the true cause of infantile injury. Experiments using biomechanical models to recreate the whiplash movement have not revealed subdural haemorrhaging, but limitations in the models have doubt to these results.
Keywords: Shaken baby syndrome, serious neurological injury, acceleration–deceleration of the head