A “well-loved” baby boy died while lying between his parents in bed. Mason Sage, who was 11 weeks old, was discovered “not breathing” by his father Dom Sage at around 6.30am on the morning of September 16, 2021, with dry blood under his eye and nose, an inquest at Pontypridd Coroners’ Court heard.
Mr Sage, 29, recounted to the court how he immediately woke his partner and Mason’s mother Emily Owens when he realised Mason wasn’t breathing. “I then opened his mouth and started breathing through his mouth and nose but no matter how hard I tried I couldn’t get any air into him,” Mr Sage said. “It was like blowing into a wall. The ambulance control room confirmed what I was doing was correct and they continued telling me what to do over the phone.”
Ms Owens, 28, called 999 as soon as she woke up and paramedics Clare Bunton, Emma Jane Williams, and Paul Rowberry arrived at the house at The Avenue in Pontycymer, Bridgend, at 6.35am. Ms Bunton told the court in a statement that it had been difficult to open the baby’s airways due to what appeared to be early rigor mortis in Mason’s jaw.
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Further paramedics arrived and Mason was conveyed to the Princess of Wales Hospital in Bridgend where resuscitation attempts briefly continued before he was pronounced dead at 7.10am. The court heard how the young couple had always been careful when often sleeping with Mason. They would ensure there were no pillows near him, he was on his back, and that any quilts or other materials were kept completely away from his face.
“Mason mainly slept in the bed,” Ms Owens said. “He did go in the cot sometimes, which was right next to me. He woke up once at around 1am and I gave him a bottle. He drank all of it almost in one go. He was fine. I put him in our bed and moved the cushions to the bottom of the bed and put him in the middle of us and he settled.
“[In the morning] I heard Dom wake up briefly and he went downstairs to let the cat out. He came back into the bedroom and I could see him trying something. I thought he was texting but then he put the light on. He then said Mason wasn’t breathing. I was in shock and screaming and Dom started to do CPR on him and I was giving instructions from the ambulance service. Within five minutes the ambulance arrived.”
The hearing heard how before Mason died he’d been “struggling” with symptoms of irritable bowel syndrome. He’d spent some of the day before “screaming in pain” and “sleeping for long periods of time”. Ms Owens grew so concerned she’d set an alarm for the next morning so she could ring the doctors.
Pathologist Dr Stephen Leadbeatter told the inquest he found no sign of illness or injury externally on Mason’s body. He also said from his findings a hernia in Mason’s belly button had “nothing to do with” Mason’s death and he couldn't link any of Mason's symptoms to his death. Further internal examinations revealed Mason had an intra alveolar haemorrhage meaning some blood was found on his lungs.
“This raises concerns over whether there was an obstruction of the airways,” Dr Leadbeatter said, adding the condition has also been observed in young children when airway obstruction hasn’t been present. He concluded an “unexplained sudden death in infancy”.
“It's one of those things sadly where sometimes we don’t know what the explanation is,” he told the family. “It is perhaps part of our public health role in a way to say some things are regarded as risk factors in relation to unexplained sudden death in infancy. I have heard of sharing a sleeping space with an infant [as a risk factor]. I understand the Nice (National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) guidance is that one should not routinely advise against sharing a bed with an infant but you have to be aware of certain things if you are going to share a bed and things to avoid.”
Nice guidance for sharing a bed with a baby includes making sure the baby sleeps on a firm and flat mattress lying face up, not sleeping on a sofa or a chair with a baby, not having pillows or duvets near a baby, and not having other children or pets in the bed at the same time as the baby. You can read more on that here.
Health visitor Kelly Howells told the inquest in a statement that the family home showed Mason was “loved”. She explained how Ms Owens had even spoken to her about her concerns of sudden death in infants and how to avoid it. During a visit on July 20, 2021, Ms Howells said Mason was “lovely and a good weight”. “Emily always brought Mason to the clinic whenever required,” she said.
Coroner Patricia Morgan issued a narrative conclusion, reading into the record: “Mason Sage died on September 16, 2021, as a result of sudden unexplained death in infancy.”
Mr Sage told the court that Mason was the couple’s first child and was “loved so much”. “I loved that time we had in bed,” he said. “He was our life.” Grandmother Jacqueline Sage added: “He was developing really well. He was a happy, well-loved baby.”
There was no evidence or suggestion that the parents had done anything wrong prior to Mason’s death, contributing to Dr Leadbeatter’s view and the coroner's conclusion. But after the hearing Mr Sage told WalesOnline he now wouldn't ever risk sleeping with his daughter Evie, who is seven months old.
Showing a mattress alarm he has bought for Evie in her cot, he explained how the alarm – which he was told about by the Lullaby Trust, which has supported the couple along with the charity 2wish following Mason's death – recognises when a baby might have stopped breathing in sleep. It operates with sensors. "I had no idea these existed but we've got two of them now," he said as he demonstrated in the centre of his lounge which is covered with photographs of Mason. "These mattress alarms save lives. I'd recommend them to any new parents. I know we did nothing wrong but I wouldn't risk sleeping with my baby ever again."
Recalling the day Mason died Mr Sage remembered: "It was brutal. The police came in all day and were looking through the house. We couldn't come back to the house until 5pm in the evening. They were respectful about it but at the time I felt angry they were here. Now looking back I know the police were just being professional because at the time a lot of young children seemed to be being neglected or killed by parents even near here. So I think the hospital staff who dealt with me were thinking: 'Not another one.' The hospital staff said in a way it's nice to have this cause because you can see no harm came to Mason and how much we cared for Mason."
But Mr Sage said the couple still feel as though their questions haven't been answered. "We waited for two years and it dragged on and basically we've got no answers and we will never know what really caused Mason's death. We were obviously hoping for a cause," he added.
"There will always be a hole in our lives now but Evie has arrived and she's given us so much comfort. She keeps us busy. We wouldn't change her for the world. I'm speaking about it openly because it could happen to anyone and we want to explain what happened to Mason because we don't want anyone going through what we have."
