the number of cases doubled in the Paris region during Covid

The number of cases of shaken babies exploded in the Paris region during the Covid-19 crisis: this is revealed by a study carried out by research teams from the Necker-Enfants Malades hospital of the AP-HP, and from the University of Paris Cité, associated with a team from Inserm published, Tuesday August 30, in the journal JAMA Network Open.

These researchers analyzed the evolution of the incidence and severity of shaken baby syndrome (SBS) in infants in the Ile-de-France region during the first two years of the Covid-19 pandemic (the period 2020-2021) compared to the pre-pandemic period (the period 2017-2019).

SBS is the most severe form of child abuse and neglect and the most common cause of traumatic death among infants in high-income countries. Nevertheless, the clinical signs which make it possible to establish this form of ill-treatment are debated. Accused parents and specialists denounce flaws in the expertise.

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Non-lethal forms of SBS are associated with severe long-term morbidity such as neurodevelopmental disorders (epilepsy, motor and visual impairments, language disorders, intellectual disability, and behavioral abnormalities) resulting in lifelong disability. In all, 99 infants with SBS were included in the study.

For all these babies, the signs of severity of the violence inflicted were very frequent: 87% had a rupture of the bridge veins (which connect the brain to the internal wall of the skull), 75% retinal haemorrhages, 32% fractures, 26% status epilepticus, and 13% died. Compared to the pre-pandemic period (2017-2019), the incidence of SBS remained stable in 2020, then doubled in 2021, the study reveals.

Risk perceived by the scientific, medical and social community

Concerns had been expressed very early on by the scientific, medical and social community about a risk of” blast “ of the incidence of child abuse and neglect, including SBS, following the Covid-19 pandemic and containment measures, recall the authors of the study.

For the research teams, the fact that this massive increase in SBS did not occur during the first year of the pandemic when containment and mitigation measures were at their maximum, but during the second year, could be explained by a accumulation of psychosocial distress.

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The World with AFP