Shaken Baby Syndrome

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The Bible does not mention the words child abuse, but there are many scriptures that refer to God’s love for children such as Mark 9:42 (KJV) which reads “And whosoever shall offend one of these little ones that believe in me, it is better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and he were cast into the sea.” The Center for Disease Control (CDC) says that Shaken Baby Syndrome is a form of child abuse in which the infant is shaken by the caretaker, whom may be a relative or non-relative. This occurs most often due to the caretaker being anger or frustrated. When the child is violently shaken it can lead to rotation of the brain in the skull which causes the blood vessels to tear the connections between neurons. Shaking makes the fragile brain bounce back and forth inside the skull and causes bruising, swelling, and bleeding, which can lead to permanent, severe brain damage or death. This can lead to long term medical problems, physical and learning disabilities, as well as death. The immediate consequences of this violent shaking are injuring or destroying brain tissues; blood vessels feeding the brain can be torn, leading to bleeding around the brain; and the blood pools within the skull, sometimes creating more pressure within the skull and causing additional brain damage, as well as, retinal bleeding can occur. Due to the size of the baby’s head, making up about 25% of their total body weight, the neck muscles are too weak to support such a disproportionately large head. The brains are immature and more easily injured by shaking and the blood vessels around the brain are more susceptible to tearing. The National Center on shaken Baby Syndrome and the CDC offer information and resources for professionals as well as parents on SBS. The CDC provides information on preventions initiatives that can easily implemented by any agency or
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