Drop-side Baby Cribs Recalled

The Consumer Product Safety Commission announced that at least 32 young children have been strangled, or suffocated, because of defects with drop-side cribs during the last nine years. During the same period 14 other cases of death were reported in these same type cribs although it has not been officially determined if the drop-side was the problem. The agency also reported that there have been hundreds of other accidents involving the drop-side detachments in cribs from different manufacturers. Some of the 32 deaths were a result of the drop-side detaching without the caregivers being aware of the situation.

The drop-side crib involves one side that moves up or down. This supposedly allows an adult, particularly a shorter person, to remove the baby from the crib more easily. The agency reported that drop-side cribs tend to be less safe than cribs with four fixed-sides. This is because a drop-side can be deformed or detached, or it can break. This results in creating a gap between the mattress and the side that has dropped.

Eleven recalls, involving more than seven million of these drop-side cribs have taken placed during the last five years. The recalls were a direct result of suffocation and strangulation possibilities. The agency gave the warning following the day after 170,000 drop-side cribs, with the brand name of C&T International, Sorelle, and Golden Baby were recalled due to injuries to infants. The week before thousands of additional drop-sides were recalled, according to the agency, using the names of Simplicity and Graco cribs.