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A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
421–430 of 639 posts
Re: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#422Earlier quoted context omitted.
Not everywhere is the US.
This isn’t even true for the US. In the US we believe it’s better to let a criminal run free than deprive an innocent of their liberty.
That seems to be the sentiment based on our founding origins or if you talk to an individual, but the fact is that we imprison more people per capita than anyone else. It's hard for me to believe that all of the criminals just live in the USA.
Re: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#423This is timely as the life of Robert Roberson is currently being decided based on this syndrome: https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=37632122 https://www.themarshallproject.org/2023/09/15/texas-shaken-b...
From a related article on the case [1]:
> Evans said the syndrome remains a fair medical diagnosis and also notes in the report that SBS was not the sole cause of child's death.
There ought to be a law where lawyers deal with legal interpretations and advice and medical doctors deal with medical interpretation and advice.
In a sane world, she'd be taken off the bench until she completes some remedial legal coursework and several dozen hours of medical talks from this century.
[1] https://www.cbs19.tv/article/news/local/judge-denies-recommending-east-texas-death-row-inmates-appeal-exoneration-new-trial/501-39bfdd8e-b687-4065-9b34-25b60c320e6cRe: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#424Earlier quoted context omitted.
What's weird is that you apparently don't understand the difference between being asked that question by your child's pediatrician vs a random stranger on the internet.
The question is not weird in the context of telling the story on a messageboard. If we were applying the default "random stranger" rules, the story never would have been shared in the first place.
The answer can make the story wildly different.
Re: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#425Earlier quoted context omitted.
That’s nuts. Even if you were correct about that, and I’m not admitting any such thing, it isn’t how people work. If the state doesn’t provide justice, then the mob will.
"Justice" is an incredibly malleable idea that is largely shaped by what people are told. Until very, very recently, nobody gave a fuck about serial killers, or even knew they existed. If the hype stopped, there wouldn't be any mobs to worry about.
Define recently. There is plenty of historical hysteria around them. Ever heard of Jack the Ripper?
Re: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#426Earlier quoted context omitted.
That’s okay, I know. Anyone with the wherewithal can learn to “read and understand research” it’s not a magical power bestowed upon the few who receive recognition from some long standing bloated institution. Attributing the drive and work of an individual to such an institution is weird and elitist. I should note that if said institution paid for, assembled the team, and provided resources, then that institution obv…
I think this is a misunderstanding of how stuff works. I agree that anyone (or at least a large percentage of people) can learn to do it and it isn't a magical power. But it's far more common for academics to be able to do it because that's what academics learn to do . It's a large focus of the training. It isn't elitist to say "car mechanics are good at reading and acting on the information in car engine manuals", t…
I don’t think there’s any misunderstanding. Your comment seems in line with what I said and what I believe.
One can teach themselves how to be a mechanic and pass the ASE. Most go through some course to learn the trade, of course. It’s more structured that way and many find it easier.
I’ve never had my auto repair shop attribute their mechanic’s skill to where they learned to be a mechanic. I never turned down a mechanic bc they didn’t go to the brown or Harvard of car repair.
On the other hand I’m an expert in my field, but I’ve been turned down from at least 1 job specifically because I didn’t graduate from Brown university. (It was a backend job for the now-defunct Delivery Dudes)
OP attributed the mettle of the author to higher education and academia, which I think is weird and elitist.
Attributing success or ability to an institution fosters that kind of weird elitism.
Re: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#427“ Let there be no misunderstanding on the point that shaking is an absolutely real and dramatic form of child abuse. Inflicted head trauma is a devastating condition and a definite cause of traumatic brain injuries, including intracranial hemorrhage. Many medical determinations of SBS/AHT are made on children who have effectively been victims of violent intentional trauma. Prevention efforts against all forms of chil…
You're assuming that medical science is capable of providing an explanation in every case, when the whole point of this article is to say that these symptoms are insufficient to diagnose SBS. The author is saying if we have no alternative medical explanations, then we have no medical explanation at all. In order to diagnose SBS, the author suggests that you need additional evidence suggesting trauma such as bruising,…
"You're assuming that medical science is capable of providing an explanation in every case, when the whole point of this article is to say that these symptoms are insufficient to diagnose SBS"
I do not disagree with you. I just caution as does the author that you can't rule out criminality either.
Re: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#428Earlier quoted context omitted.
Has SIDS been linked to co-sleeping? I thought the risks of co-sleeping were more around accidentally rolling on or suffocating the baby.
Newer research shows a good chunk of SIDS cases actually _are_ likely suffocation from various causes. That’s why the SIDS reduction measures are mostly ‘sleep on the back, in an empty crib, with nothing soft around’. But it’s much easier to tell a grieving parent that there’s nothing they could have done, than that their baby got unlucky and suffocated to death.
You are speaking facts, but it runs into the medical problem of “overdiagnosis” where the treatment can be worse than the disease.
Swaddling the baby and forcing it to sleep on its back, may have a tiny statistical benefit for SIDS, but it causes tons of problems at a time when people are taxed to the limit of their abilities.
We could reduce the incident of breast cancer by removing every woman’s breasts, but that would be an improper risk assessment.
The biggest factor linked to SIDS is poverty, and after that it’s stuff like going to bed while under the influence of drugs and smoking.
Re: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#429>> how many people are in jail or lost their kids due to something that didn't actually happen. Thousands upon thousands. By some estimates upwards of 10% of incarcerated individuals. The situation is just accepted. The general consensus is always that locking up too many people is better than than too few. It is on defense attorneys to check on the system.
Are you saying that 10% of incarcerated individuals are innocent (which I do not find an unrealistic number), or are you saying that 10% of incarcerated individuals are wrongly in prison for crimes against their children?
10% of people are innocent of the crimes for which they have been convicted. Whole innocence is another thing. But yes, there are a huge number of people wrongfully convicted. Things like DNA evidence is showing us that a great many mistakes are made. For those crimes convicted without things like DNA evidence, one must presume an equal rate of wrongful convictions. Courts are not FAA crash investigations, or any other sort of investigation. They are not about truth. They are about rights and laws. There is no right to a truthful outcome, only a lawful one.
Re: A journey into the shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma controversy
#430Earlier quoted context omitted.
The problem is that the phrase "a valid concern" would lead me to think "something doctors and parents should consult on (also with the child themself!) and determine if there is cause for alarm, and if so decide collaboratively what the proper course of action is." Sure! Of course! That's what you do with valid health concerns, right? What it actually means is "something for which social workers will decide whether…
Abusers sometimes take their victims elsewhere - new doc, new town, new state - when people start getting suspicious. The victim may also be retaliated against; accused of trying to get help. There’s a risk to consulting someone you suspect might be the perpetrator.
There's also a pretty big risk to assuming abuse when it isn't present, removing a child from their parents is an action causing great trauma to the child. Even just putting the family through an adversarial process where removal is threatened can be very traumatic to all involved. If there is a challenging health issue going on too, adding all that on top is actually adding barriers to addressing the challenging health issue, and is harmful.
The solution to reducing risk and harm is not to always err on the side of assuming abuse and making families prove otherwise.