A child boy possible suffocated to demise after being left alone on a play mat whereas his mother and father slept, an inquest heard.
Little Leonidas Ramsden was simply 4 months previous when he was discovered unresponsive at his house in Buckfastleigh, Devon, on April 28 2022.
The newborn boy, who was born on Christmas Day, had been positioned on his again on the mat, and his father Dudley did not need to disturb him by shifting the infant to his Moses basket.
The daddy fell asleep on the couch and when mom Chloe Knapton, 21, checked on Leo three hours later, round 6am, he was face down and unresponsive.
The mat had a security warning on it that learn infants and toddlers shouldn’t be left unsupervised, and the mom mentioned she ‘by no means left him unattended in it’.
Space coroner for Devon Alison Longhorn, mentioned Leonidas ‘possible’ suffocated on the mat as a result of he could not breathe freely.
In a fundraiser set as much as pay for a memorial final yr, Leo’s younger mom mentioned: ‘We’re devastated and misplaced, feeling caught in a actuality that should not exist. We are going to by no means really feel full once more.
‘I am 21 years previous. I’ve made two good, stunning youngsters. My daughter Azaylea and my son Leonidas-Aurelius . We fell in love the second I met them.
Little Leonidas Ramsden was simply 4 months previous when he was discovered unresponsive at his house in Buckfastleigh, Devon, on April 28 2022
‘Our son Leonidas-Aurelius was 4 months and three days previous when he rolled over in the midst of the evening whereas his household slept. He did not cry… he did not get up… he simply slipped away in his sleep with small candy smile on his face.
‘The second me and my associate woke from a pair hours napping. We needed to face essentially the most actuality shattering and horrific realisation… that Leonidas-Aurelius, the right soul had left the gorgeous vessel we had created.’
She added: ‘Leo had essentially the most stunning low tones to his voice and he beloved the sound of it… he was all the time displaying off his pretty cooing sounds however most of all he beloved to roar.
‘If you held his fingers he would maintain on and elevate himself into the air… At all times smiling and holding his head excessive. He was such a good looking sight… 4 months and three days of showering him in love and kisses was the perfect moments of my life.’
In line with The Solar, Chloe used the play mat as ‘additional consolation’ whereas feeding however ‘knew it was not a secure sleeping state of affairs’.
She had requested the daddy to maneuver Leo to his Moses basket at 3am as a result of she wasn’t feeling effectively.
A submit mortem was unable to determine a reason for demise however the coroner dominated a story conclusion that he died ‘having been present in a face down sleeping place whereas sleeping on a mat’.
The inquest heard that it was a ‘sleeping pod however it appeared extra just like the beneath of a play mat’.
Nevertheless it had a warning label telling mother and father to not depart a baby below three unattended in it, so ‘it was not an official sleeping pod’.
Sleeping pods – that are softer with cushioned areas with out straps to carry the infant in place – are usually not really helpful as a result of they enhance the danger of sudden toddler demise syndrome.
Child mats are usually flat and agency.Â
In 2017, Tesco and Mothercare have been amongst a string of British retailers to cease promoting the merchandise because of security considerations. Boots later joined them in banning the pods.
They’re nonetheless broadly obtainable on Amazon.
In a earlier warning to folks, youngsters’s charity the Lullaby Belief wrote in an open letter: ‘Gadgets comparable to cushioned sleeping pods, nests, child hammocks, cot bumpers, pillows, duvets and something that wedges or straps a child in place can pose a danger to infants below 12 months.
‘Proof reveals that sleeping a child on something however a agency, flat floor, or utilizing mushy, heavy bedding, can enhance the danger of sudden toddler demise syndrome (SIDS).
‘They’ll result in overheating or doubtlessly impede a child’s airway in the event that they roll or their face turns into coated by free bedding.’
A spokesperson for The Lullaby Belief beforehand mentioned: ‘As a SIDS charity, we’ve watched with concern as merchandise that go towards safer sleep recommendation acquire recognition.
‘It’s arduous for folks when they’re making an attempt to select from the overwhelming variety of child merchandise on provide and many individuals make the cheap assumption that if an merchandise is bought on the excessive avenue or made by a recognised model it’s secure for his or her child.’
