Parents who bought Infantino baby slings are being warned to return them after the carriers were linked to three infant deaths in the US.
US company Infantino on Wednesday recalled more than a million Sling Rider baby carriers after the Consumer Product Safety Commission said babies, especially those younger than four months, could suffocate in the soft fabric slings. That same day, the UK also recalled the baby sling, the Press Association reported.
The head of the Malta Standards Authority market surveillance, Michael Cassar, said no complaints or warnings had been received about the slings from the European Commission. However, he added, the authority contacted Infantino's offices in the US to obtain a list of any agents in Malta and was waiting for a reply.
By yesterday afternoon, the authority tracked down one agent who said he had imported about 18 of the Sling Rider model two years ago.
"He still has one unit in his stores and is making arrangements with his sub-agents to remove any slings still on their shelves from the market and accept any slings that are returned by consumers," Mr Cassar said.
While stressing that there was no need to raise undue alarm among consumers, he recommended that anyone who had the product stopped using it and returned it to the shop from where it was bought.
The MSA will be notifying the EU Commission about this in order to alert any other EU countries about the matter. Mater Dei Hospital's paediatric department chairman Simon Attard Montalto said that if parents decided to use baby slings they should ensure the size was right for the infant so that the baby would not slip. The baby should always be secured properly in place and parents should make sure the harnessing and any buckles were safe.
No matter how professional a sling's brand, he added, the reality was that there were limits to testing the product as it was not ethical to use babies for experiments.
"No matter how safe a sling looks, babies should never be left unattended inside it," he stressed. Prof. Attard Montalto said he once had a case of a child who died after slipping off the fabric that lined a highchair.
Earlier this month, the US Consumer Commission issued a general warning about sling-style baby carriers without singling out a specific type of sling or manufacturer. It said it had identified or was investigating at least 14 deaths in the last 20 years associated with baby slings.
As reported by the PA, the commission said infants would suffocate in two different ways in a sling: The fabric could press against the baby's nose and mouth, blocking the breathing. Also, if the baby was cradled in a C-like position, the curved position could cause the baby's head to flop forward, chin-to-chest, restricting the ability to breathe or cry for help. The Malta Standards' Authority can be contacted for more information on 2395 2000.