Comparative analysis of differences by gender in sudden infant death syndrome in Hungary and Japan

We examined the sex ratio in sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) cases in H ungary, in Tokyo and Japan between 1985 and 1996. From all the infant death cases in Hungary 395 (240 male, 155 female) were SIDS (odds ratio (OR) = 1 .179, with 95% confidence interval (CI) = 0.961, 1.446), in Japan 4348 (255 0 male, 1798 female) were SIDS (OR = 1.145, with 95% CI = 1.076, 1.218) and in Tokyo 307 (178 male, 129 female) were SIDS (OR = 1.128, with 95% CI = 0 .894, 1.423). Male infants showed a significantly higher birth rate than fe males. The male infants are more vulnerable (p < 0.005), however, higher mo rtality among male infants should not be considered a characteristic featur e for SIDS. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.