ETHNIC-DIFFERENCES IN PARENT INFANT CO-SLEEPING PRACTICES NEW-ZEALAND/

Aim. This study was designed to monitor changes in the prevalence of r isk factors for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) in the New Zealand population. The behaviour of interest is parent/infant co-sleeping. T his paper reports parent/infant co-sleeping arrangements of different ethnic groups in New Zealand. Methods. A stratified random sample of 6 268 infants attending Plunket clinics for their three and six-month vi sits was taken over the years 1995-1996. Maori and Pacific infants wer e oversampled. Parents who shared a bed with their infant were asked h ow they arranged the babies sleeping place according to pre-coded diag rams. Routine parent/infant co-sleeping was defined as ''bed sharing a t least four nights over the last two weeks'' Results. There were 2693 infants who shared the bed with their sleeping parents during at leas t one of the previous 14 nights. Of these infants, 1060 routinely shar ed the parents' bed. At three months, 56% of routinely co-sleeping inf ants slept directly in the bed, 29% slept in a raised position, 3% sle pt in a carrycot or basket, and 5% in other positions. At six months, 60% of the routinely co-sleeping infants slept directly in the bed wit h their parents, 23% slept in a raised position, 1% slept in a carryco t or basket, and 7% in other positions. There were significant differe nces in the co-sleeping locations by ethnicity. Conclusion. There is s till some ongoing dispute as to whether parent/infant co-sleeping is a risk factor for SIDS. This study has identified differences in the wa y infants co-sleep with their parents and this can be used to clarify infant care practices in relation to SIDS.