Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Syracuse - Town Marshal Tony Ciriello is a busy man.
But he's not too busy to make a difference.
When Ciriello was contacted by his friend Dr. Steven Clark about a special project, Ciriello pitched in to help.
Recently, the Centers for Disease Control contacted Clark about heading a committee and piloting a program to research and investigate Sudden Unexplained Infant Death Syndrome cases.
SUIDS is the leading killer of infants between 1 month and 1 year of age. According to the CDC, more than 4,500 children in the United States die suddenly from no apparent cause each year.
However, some deaths classified as SUIDS are not investigated, so some deaths attributed to SUIDS may actually be caused by abuse. The only way to correctly identify a SUIDS death is to perform a thorough exam that rules out any other possible cause.
"Children do die of SUIDS, but some deaths attributed to SUIDS are really child abuse," Ciriello said.
That's where Ciriello and the 24 other members of Clark's national committee come in. The committee, which includes three people from Indiana, worked to devise a plan of action for law enforcement and medical agencies to use when investigating a possible SUIDS death.
In the past, SUIDS deaths were not reported consistently, making data difficult to collect.
With the new standards set up by Ciriello and the committee, data can be collected and information about the deaths will be more readily available.
Now training materials and a curriculum have been set up to help investigators and coroners conduct more thorough SUIDS investigations.
"The guidelines are fairly new," said Ciriello. "The guidelines cover (how to process) scene investigation, autopsies, interviews, and the medical histories of the parents and siblings of the child (who dies from what is believed to be SUIDS)."
Although no national training standards currently exist, the CDC is in the process of setting up five regional training sessions over the next two years. The first "Train-The-Trainer Academy" will be in St. Louis, Mo., June 12-15. Another will be in Atlanta, Ga., in September.
"The training sessions will provide training to investigators on how to follow through (with SUIDS death investigations)," said Ciriello, who will attend the St. Louis session.
Clark also chose Indiana to pilot a more extensive SUIDS death investigation program.
"Indiana is the only state that requires coroners to be certified legal death investigators," said Ciriello.
In Indiana, the program will focus on scene investigation and in-depth interviews.
Once the program is refined in Indiana, it may be put into use in other states as well.
Ciriello hopes putting together practical guidelines will help others investigate SUIDS deaths and prevent improper diagnosis in the future.
"My goal is to ensure the deaths are investigated properly," Ciriello said. "Then proper action can be taken in cases of child abuse."
