Jim O'Keeffe
Question:166 Mr. J. O'Keeffe asked the Minister for Health the number of cot deaths in Ireland for each of the years 1992 and 1993; and the amount of money presently being provided by the Government for research into such deaths.
Written Answers. - Sudden Infant Deaths.
There were 58 cases of sudden infant death in 1992 and 26 inthe first two quarters of 1993; however, it should be noted that these figures are provisional.
My Department is currently in the third year of a three year funding commitment to the national sudden infant death register and has also contributed towards the costs of an associated case control study in 1992, 1993 and 1994. Total funding to date for these two projects is £97,500.
In addition, the health research board, which is the main mechanism through which State funding is channelled to medical and related research, has in recent years funded a study on the pathology of the placenta in cases of sudden infant death syndrome for which £35,000 was made available.