Good News. The Clinician has reviewed your child and has advised you can go home. Your child has been diagnosed as having had a Brief, Resolved, Unexplained Episode (BRUE).
What is a BRUE?
A brief resolved unexplained episode (BRUE) describes an event that can occur in infants under 12 months old, during which, for a short period of time they may:
- Become pale or grey in appearance
- Appear to have stopped breathing or have been gasping for air
- Relax their muscles and become floppy
- Appear unresponsive
A BRUE self resolves in less than one minute and the infant returns to their normal self.
A BRUE can be an extremely frightening and upsetting experience for the parent or caregiver.
What causes a BRUE?
The cause of a BRUE is ‘unexplained’ and there is no known medical cause.
Back to topIs there something wrong with my child?
NO.
A BRUE can occur in an otherwise healthy and well infant. Whilst in hospital, your child will have received a thorough head to toe examination and have had their heart rate, breathing and temperature monitored at least twice. No medical problems have been found with your child today.
Will it happen again?
From the history and examination today your child has been identified as Low Risk as:
- They have never had a BRUE before
- The event lasted for less than one minute
- They are over 60 days old
- They were born at more than 32 weeks gestation and have a corrected gestational age of over 45 weeks
- No cardio-pulmonary resuscitation (CPR) by a trained medical provider was needed
This means that your child is unlikely to have a severe underlying medical problem that caused the BRUE and so are unlikely to have a repeat episode.
Does my child need to stay in hospital or need more investigations?
NO.
Low Risk BRUEs do not require any more investigations or admission to hospital. Extra investigations such as blood tests and X-rays would only cause distress and pain to your child and unnecessary harmful radiation.
After a Low Risk BRUE, your child is best cared for in the comfort of their own home.
Back to topWhat should I do now?
Continue to love and care for your child as you would do normally.
No special care or attention is required. With all children, it is important they are kept up to date with their vaccinations and that they attend their regular health checks.
You should ensure safe sleeping arrangements and should avoid co-sleeping with your infant.
You can also improve your child’s health by making sure they are kept away from environments with cigarette smoke and other toxins and that they receive age-appropriate nutrition.
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