Shaken baby syndrome is a head injury caused by violently shaking an infant. According to the Haute Autorité de santé (HAS, the French National Authority for Health), it affects several hundred children in France every year, almost always before the age of 1 and, in two cases out of three, before 6 months. It is serious, often repeated, and entirely preventable.
What is shaken baby syndrome?
The HAS also calls it “non-accidental head injury caused by shaking”. It happens when an adult violently shakes a baby, most often while holding them under the arms, around the chest.
A baby’s head is heavy compared with the rest of the body, and the neck muscles cannot yet hold it steady. When the baby is shaken, the head is thrown backwards and forwards. The brain moves inside the skull, which can tear the small veins connecting it to the dura mater and cause bleeding.
This is not a playful movement or vigorous rocking. It is violent shaking, which the Assurance Maladie (French national health insurance) describes as abuse.
How many children are affected in France?
The available figures are estimates, because some cases are never diagnosed. Even so, the health authorities agree on the order of magnitude.
- Haute Autorité de santé (2017): several hundred child victims every year in France. In 2011, the HAS was already putting the figure at “at least 200” cases a year, while noting that this number was probably an underestimate.
- Santé publique France (2019): an analysis of hospital data from 2015 to 2017 identified 1,215 children aged 1 to 11 months admitted to hospital with a probable or possible head injury caused by shaking. That represents 512 probable cases and 703 possible cases.
- Incidence: 22.1 probable cases per 100,000 live births, and 52.4 including possible cases, according to the same study.
The Assurance Maladie also reports, on its page updated on 17 June 2026, that the number of cases doubled in 2021 compared with 2020, with a tenfold increase in deaths.
Which babies are most at risk?
Shaking mainly affects the youngest babies, at the age when crying is most frequent and hardest to soothe.
- It most often happens before the age of 1, and in two thirds of cases before 6 months (HAS, Assurance Maladie).
- In the Santé publique France study, the median age of the children admitted to hospital was 4 months. 72 % of probable cases involved babies under 6 months.
- Boys accounted for 66 % of probable cases.
- The French Ministry of Health states that most victims are between two and four months old.
The perpetrators are most often men: seven times out of ten, according to the HAS in 2011. The Assurance Maladie names fathers first, followed by childminders. No social background is spared.
Serious and often permanent consequences
Shaken baby syndrome is one of the most serious forms of abuse in infants. The official figures bear this out.
- More than 10 % of shaken babies die as a result, according to the Assurance Maladie. The Ministry puts it at “one victim in ten”.
- In the Santé publique France hospital study, 55 children died in hospital, a case fatality rate of 6.3 % among probable cases.
- Around three survivors in four are left with after-effects that require specialist care.
These after-effects take many forms: delayed psychomotor development, cognitive and behavioural difficulties, epilepsy, paralysis, and visual or hearing impairments. They often last a lifetime.
Rarely a one-off
The HAS points out that in most cases the shaking is repeated. The Ministry states that the babies concerned had been shaken ten times on average. Each episode makes the injuries worse.
That is why the HAS stresses the importance of diagnosis: if the syndrome goes unrecognised, the child is exposed to further shaking. Its 2017 recommendations guide doctors through the examination and the steps to protect the child.
Warning signs
The Assurance Maladie lists the signs that may appear just after a baby has been shaken:
- unusual drowsiness;
- a stiff body, abnormal movements, seizures;
- difficulty breathing;
- vomiting, loss of appetite;
- abnormal eye movements.
If you suspect a baby has been shaken, call 15 (Samu, the French emergency medical service) or 112 straight away. Do not wait for the signs to go away on their own.
What to do when the crying becomes unbearable
A baby can cry for a long time without any identifiable cause, and that is normal. The exhaustion and exasperation it brings are normal too. The danger arises when tiredness overrides self-control.
The health authorities’ advice is simple, and every adult who looks after a baby should know it:
- lay the baby on their back, in their cot, where they are safe;
- leave the room and close the door while you calm down;
- call someone close to you to take over;
- ask a professional for help, without shame.
A baby crying alone in their cot for a few minutes is not at risk. A shaken baby is. To understand this crying and how to respond, our article on crying in newborns explains the causes and the signs that mean you should see a doctor. The safe sleep rules recommended by the HAS also apply at these moments.
Numbers to know (France)
- 15 or 112: life-threatening emergency, a baby showing any of the signs above.
- 119, Allô Enfance en danger: free, 24 hours a day, to report a child at risk or ask for advice.
- Allô Parents Bébé, 0 800 00 34 56: free helpline for exhausted parents. According to the Ministry, it is open Monday to Friday, from 10 am to 1 pm and from 2 pm to 6 pm.
Prevention also means looking after parents
As early as 2011, the HAS stressed that professionals should inform new parents about this risk, and that looking after yourself also protects your child. Lack of sleep, isolation and psychological distress all increase vulnerability.
There are plenty of resources to make sure you are not left on your own. Our article on parents’ sleep offers practical ways to recover. The one on the baby blues and postnatal depression helps you recognise the warning signs. PMI teams (Protection maternelle et infantile, the free French mother and child health service) can also support families: see what happens at a PMI appointment.
Finally, anyone who looks after a baby – grandparent, babysitter or partner – should know this advice. Talking about it before leaving your child with them takes just a minute.
Sources
- Haute Autorité de santé, “Syndrome du bébé secoué ou traumatisme crânien non accidentel par secouement”, good practice recommendation approved on 12 July 2017, published online on 29 September 2017.
- Haute Autorité de santé, “Bébé secoué: une forme mal connue de maltraitance aux conséquences irréparables”, press release of 13 September 2011.
- Santé publique France, Paget L.-M. et al., “Les enfants victimes de traumatismes crâniens infligés par secouement hospitalisés: analyse exploratoire des données du PMSI”, Bulletin épidémiologique hebdomadaire, 15 October 2019.
- Assurance Maladie (ameli.fr), “Syndrome du bébé secoué”, updated on 17 June 2026.
- French Ministry of Health (solidarites.gouv.fr), “Syndrome du bébé secoué: une maltraitance qui peut être mortelle”, accessed on 27 September 2026.
