(cont.) Despite the huge controversy generated by Meadow's theories, he continues to be a big draw on the lecture circuit. Later this month he will lecture to a 1,500-strong audience of child-protection workers from 30 countries at a conference in San Diego in the United States. The 'Quest for the Best' conference is billed as a platform for health workers to learn 'best practices'.

Meadow is to give a lecture entitled 'The Medical Diagnosis of MSBP - Warning Signs and Strategies for Diagnosis'. In a separate lecture, he will also discuss how the backlash against MSBP has affected the paediatrics profession. When Meadow addressed British doctors last November, they were awarded 'personal development points' on their CVs for attending.

Penny Mellor, who campaigns on behalf of parents wrongly accused of suffering from MSBP and will attend Canning's meeting with Goldsmith, said: 'Given the concerns about the use of expert medical evidence which were raised in the Attorney General's review of hundreds of criminal cases, many of which involved Meadow, I don't understand how he can be allowed to continue lecturing.'

Meadow was unavailable for comment last night, but his supporters have in the past accused his critics of conducting a vendetta against him. They say the actions of a handful of campaigners have damaged the image of paediatricians to the extent that many doctors are turning away from the profession.

The appeal court ruled that Cannings' conviction, made on the basis of the testimony of an expert witness, was unsafe. The ruling prompted the Attorney General to announce a review of almost 300 cases in which parents had been convicted of killing their children. The government also instructed local councils to look into almost 30,000 cases in the family courts where children had been separated from their parents.

Meadow also gave prosecution evidence in two other murder trials which were overturned on appeal. Sally Clark's conviction for murdering her two sons was quashed after she had spent more than three years in jail. Trupti Patel was also cleared of suffocating her three babies.

Charles Pragnell, an expert defence witness in child prosecution cases, has said previously that MSBP allegations have been made 'with no attempt having been made to thoroughly investigate possible causes of the child's illness from genetic disorders, vaccine damage, effects of prescribed medications, exposure to toxic substances, or severe allergic reactions'.

Unexpected or unexplained deaths of infants are tragic. There is a trend for law enforcement, child protection agencies and the justice system to rush to judgment in these cases where any amount of suspicion is raised, thus further destroying an already grieving family. I describe a testing procedure for all interested persons to rule out metabolic disorders.

Three to six percent of all sudden unexpected infant deaths are from inherited disorders of fatty acid oxidation (FAO.) There are numerous types of these disorders. The use of electrospray tandem mass spectrometry for analysis of these disorders is cost effective and an important step for families, doctors, lawyers and medico-legal experts to take in investigating such serious tragedies.

The most frequently detected metabolic disorders are medium chain and very long chain acyl-CoA dehydrogenase deficiencies, as well as glutaric acidemia type I and II deficiencies, among others.A method for detecting these disorders of fatty acid and organic acid metabolism has been developed. It uses small amounts of blood, which is routinely obtained at autopsy. It is then applied to filter paper. Other biological fluids can be used as well, such as bile, vitreous fluid and urine.

For more information on this, you can contact:

Alan R. Yurko
or Donald H. Chace at Neo Gen Screening
P.O. Box 219, Bridgeville, PA 15017
fax: 412.220.0784 www.neogenscreening.com

Source: Chace DH, et al, Electrospray Tandem Mass Spectrometry for Analysis of Acylcarnitines in Dried Postmortem Blood Specimens Collected at Autopsy from Infants with Unexplained Cause of Death; CLINICAL CHEMSTRY 2001:47(7) 1166-1182