The parents of an 11-week-old baby girl have been informed that their daughter died after being starved of oxygen as she slept in her father's arm.

Darcie-Rose Souster, who tragically passed away on January 22nd, had been co-sleeping with her father, Justin, when she grew floppy and unresponsive before being pronounced dead on arrival at Northampton General Hospital.

Recalling the heartbreaking events which unfolded that night, Justin explained that having fed Darcie-Rose, he laid her down between himself and his other daughter with the baby's head resting on his left forearm.

 

"When I woke up I found my arm had gone numb," he said. "It was about 5am. I moved my arm and found Darcie-Rose had flopped back and she wasn't breathing."

 

Having conducted a post mortem on the infant's remains, consultant paediatric pathologist, Dr Roger Malcomson, found evidence of blood in Darcie-Rose's lungs along with other markers of asphyxia.

While concluding there existed no suspicious circumstances which led to the baby's death, he did assert that the 'unsafe sleeping environment' in which Darcie-Rose had been placed increased her risk of death.

Offering an explanation as to why his findings prevented him from ruling her death the result of Sudden Infant Death syndrome, Dr Malcolmson said: "Given the position of co-sleeping in the bed with two parents or with a sibling, that would represent an unsafe sleeping environment for, in particular, young children."

 


Speaking to both the coroner and Darcie-Roses's grief stricken parents, he elaborated on his findings, saying: "Given the baby's head was on top of the father's arm, with the neck flexed in that position the cause of death could be given as positional asphyxiation in the context of co-sleeping."

Dr. Malcolmson concluded that Darcie-Rose, who was well-nourished with no external injuries and within both the normal height and weight range, died as a result of the co-sleeping environment, saying "In the circumstances of this case it precludes the use of SID as a potential cause of death."

Commenting on the case and sympathising with the Souster's devastating loss, senior coroner, Anne Pember, said: "Regrettably, she was in an unsafe position in her parents' bed with another little child."

Giving her verdict, she continued: "I accept the cause of death was positional asphyxiation in the context of co-sleeping"  -  a ruling which has not been welcomed by Darcie-Rose's parents.

Concerned that her daughter had an underlying cold which contributed to her death, Nicola Souster said: "I took her to the doctors and at her routine six-week check said she wasn't getting any better, she was still not able to breathe during her feeds."

Insistent that the evidence is merely circumstantial. Darcie- Rose's mother said she felt the verdict should have been 'accidental or inconclusive'.

The coroner concluded her verdict by issuing a warning to parents who regularly engage in this practice, saying; "​I feel it is important to stress that the public should be aware that sleeping with a baby, particularly young children, is unsafe."

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