Called the ‘international benchmark in the field’ in previous editions, the updated Sudden Death in Infants, Children and Young Adults continues to provide a unique and comprehensive overview of the medical and pathological aspects of sudden death in the young, from before birth to age 35. This extensively revised edition systematically addresses deaths from inflicted and non-inflicted injuries, natural disease processes, accidents, suicides, and homicides, while providing authoritative guidance on pathological investigations informed by contemporary advances in genetic susceptibility, pathophysiology, postmortem imaging, and molecular diagnostics.

Supported by current, extensive references and over 1,000 high-quality colour illustrations, the book features detailed tables cataloguing diagnostic features of both common and rare entities encountered at autopsy, functioning equally as an authoritative reference and practical autopsy manual for challenging or unusual cases. Organized by sections for intuitive navigation, the text covers all aspects of natural death and disease as well as accidents, suicides and homicides. Chapters have been extensively revised to reflect major advances in the treatment and understanding of disease, postmortem imaging, and genetic studies. New material has also been added to address ‘problem cases’, ill-understood conditions, and the numerous controversies in the field of infant and childhood inflicted injury which need to be addressed.

This essential resource is indispensable for pathologists, paediatricians, emergency physicians, forensic specialists, coroners, medical examiners, lawyers, police officers, and trainees investigating sudden unexpected deaths in hospital and medicolegal contexts. Whether determining cause of death, evaluating suspected abuse, or navigating forensic complexities, practitioners across disciplines will find the evidence-based expertise and clinical rigor necessary to approach these profoundly difficult cases with confidence and precision.

Roger Byard AC PSM is an Emeritus Professor of Pathology at Adelaide University and a Senior Specialist Forensic Pathologist at Forensic Science, Adelaide Australia. He has an interest in pediatric forensic research and has published over 1,000 peer reviewed papers, 11 texts and 151 chapters and has three higher doctorates: Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Doctor of Medicine (MD), Doctor of Science (DSc). In 2024 he was ranked the leading author globally in both Forensic Sciences (lifetime), and in Medical Jurisprudence (prior 5 years) by ScholarGPS.

Judith Fronczek MD PhD is a forensic pathologist at the Victorian Institute of Forensic Medicine, Melbourne, Australia, with pediatric pathology as an area of special expertise. She has an interest in traumatic and non-accidental childhood deaths. Her PhD involved research into dating of injuries and clinicopathological discrepancies. She was trained as a forensic pathologist at the Netherlands Forensic Institute, the Hague, and is a fellow of the Royal College of Pathologists of Australasia.