differential diagnosis
Last reviewed 01/2018
Obvious differentials include causes of death such as overwhelming sepsis and undetected congenital malformation.
A differential diagnosis includes:
- inborn errors of metabolism, particulary medium chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiency which is said to account for up to 5% of sudden infant death in some populations
- infanticide, whether as part of neglect, physical abuse or as part of Munchausen syndrome by proxy