Shaken Baby Syndrome/Abusive Head Trauma in Sweden

Child protection has been focused on detecting and preventing abuse in Sweden since the 1950s. An extensive and efficient implementation of knowledge on SBS/AHT took place from the late 1990s and intensified during the years from 2002, led by paediatricians, neuroradiologists and ophthalmologists supported by government agencies, the parliament and regional health councils. Shaken baby syndrome/abusive head trauma was presented in textbooks, professional society’s guidelines, conferences, and teaching. A taskforce for child protection was created by the Swedish Paediatric Society and child protection teams were created subsequently at the university hospitals. A steep increase in infant maltreatment diagnoses occurred concomitant to this implementation, also an increase in out-of-home care for infants with SBS/AHT findings. The SBS/AHT knowledge still prevails in the guidelines by the professional societies. However, a decline in infant maltreatment diagnoses has occurred during recent years, which might indicate a burgeoning de-implementation process related to a decision in Swedish Supreme Court (2014) and the SBU-report on traumatic shaking (2016).