Sudden Unexpected Infant and Perinatal Death: Pathological Findings of the Cardiac Conduction System

Objective: Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), sudden neonatal unexpected death (SNUD), and sudden intrauterine unexpected death (SIUD) are major unsolved, shocking forms of death that occur frequently and without warning. The body of literature on the anatomo-pathological substrates in the cardiac conduction system of SIDS-SIUD and their possible relationship with risk factors and triggers is fragmentary and scarce. The work aims is to analyze the cardiac conduction system findings collected at the national referral center for SIDS-SIUD. Methods: A total of 123 autopsied cases of SIDS (59.35% males, 40.65% females, mean age ± SD: 103.49 ± 67.17 days), 36 cases of SNUD (61.11% males, 38.89% females, mean age ± SD: 8.4 ± 9.17 days), and 127 cases of SIUD (45.67% males, 54.33% females, mean age ± SD: 36 ± 4.59 gestational weeks) were analyzed. In-depth pathological examinations of the cardiac conduction system were performed on serial sections according to the Lino Rossi Research Center’s protocol. Results: Among the studied cases, the following findings were observed: resorptive degeneration (SIDS: 88.7%, SNUD: 88.88%, SIUD: 56.69%), fetal dispersion (SIDS: 73.17%, SNUD: 91.66%, SIUD: 78.74%), Mahaim fibers (SIDS: 40.65%, SNUD: 44.44%, SIUD: 32.28%), cartilaginous meta-hyperplasia (SIDS: 56.91%, SNUD: 25%, SIUD: 33.07%), septated atrio-ventricular junction (AVJ) (SIDS: 21.14%, SNUD: 33.33%, SIUD: 38.58%), AVJ duplicity (SIDS: 6.5%, SNUD: 11.11%, SIUD: 2.36%), intramural bifurcation (SIDS: 3.25%, SNUD: 2.77%, SIUD: 4.72%). Conclusions: The prevalence of cardiac conduction findings was consistent across the SIDS, SNUD and SIUD groups. These findings provide valuable insights into the pathological characteristics of the cardiac conduction system in SIDS-SIUD that are potential morphological substrates for the development of cardiac arrhythmias. Further investigation and study of the conduction system are needed to understand the underlying mechanisms of these forms of death.