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West Virginia Value:
Percentage of women with a recent live birth who reported their infants are usually placed on their backs to sleep
Appears In:
Percentage of women with a recent live birth who reported their infants are usually placed on their backs to sleep
US Value: 81.4%
Top State(s): Maine: 90.5%
Bottom State(s): Louisiana: 69.3%
Definition: Percentage of women with a recent live birth who reported their infants are usually placed on their backs to sleep
Data Source and Years(s): CDC, Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System or state equivalent, 2021
Suggested Citation: America's Health Rankings analysis of CDC, Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System or state equivalent, United Health Foundation, AmericasHealthRankings.org, accessed 2024.
Every year 3,500 infant deaths are reported in the United States as a result of sleep-related problems. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the American Academy of Pediatrics recommend putting babies to sleep on their backs (supine position) to reduce the risk of sudden unexpected infant deaths (SUIDs).
Parents and caregivers at a disproportionate risk for not placing an infant to sleep on their backs include:
The American Academy of Pediatrics’ recently updated guidelines for reducing sleep-related infant deaths include:
Increasing new and expecting parents’ knowledge of the recommended guidelines is crucial to keep infants safe during sleep. It is also critical to ensure that pediatricians and other health care providers are educated on safe sleep practices and communicate the correct recommendations to parents.
Healthy People 2030 has an objective to increase the percentage of infants put to sleep on their backs.
Bombard, Jennifer M., Katherine Kortsmit, Lee Warner, Carrie K. Shapiro-Mendoza, Shanna Cox, Charlan D. Kroelinger, Sharyn E. Parks, et al. 2018. “Vital Signs: Trends and Disparities in Infant Safe Sleep Practices — United States, 2009–2015.” MMWR. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report 67 (1): 39–46. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm6701e1.
Hirai, Ashley H., Katherine Kortsmit, Lorena Kaplan, Erin Reiney, Lee Warner, Sharyn E. Parks, Maureen Perkins, Marion Koso-Thomas, Denise V. D’Angelo, and Carrie K. Shapiro-Mendoza. 2019. “Prevalence and Factors Associated With Safe Infant Sleep Practices.” Pediatrics 144 (5): e20191286. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2019-1286.
Moon, Rachel Y., Rebecca F. Carlin, and Ivan Hand. 2022. “Sleep-Related Infant Deaths: Updated 2022 Recommendations for Reducing Infant Deaths in the Sleep Environment.” Pediatrics 150 (1): e2022057990. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2022-057990.
Moon, Rachel Y., Marit Kington, Rosalind Oden, Joana Iglesias, and Fern R. Hauck. 2007. “Physician Recommendations Regarding SIDS Risk Reduction: A National Survey of Pediatricians and Family Physicians.” Clinical Pediatrics 46 (9): 791–800. https://doi.org/10.1177/0009922807303894.
Von Kohorn, Isabelle, Michael J. Corwin, Denis V. Rybin, Timothy C. Heeren, George Lister, and Eve R. Colson. 2010. “Influence of Prior Advice and Beliefs of Mothers on Infant Sleep Position.” Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine 164 (4). https://doi.org/10.1001/archpediatrics.2010.26.
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