Swaddling, cradling and bouncing are among the things babies generally experience. A new law is designed to make sure shaking is never added to that mix.

The S.C. General Assembly recently passed a bill targeting Shaken Baby Syndrome, a type of traumatic brain injury that happens when a baby is violently shaken. The Shaken Baby Syndrome Prevention Law goes into effect Jan. 1, 2008.

Under the law, new parents will get a look at what happens when a baby is shaken before they leave the hospital through an eight-minute video. The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke reports that the consequences can be deadly or result in mental retardation or other permanently life-altering conditions.

Shaking makes a baby's tender brain bounce back and forth inside the skull, causing bruising, swelling and bleeding. Bleeding in the brain, retinal hemorrhages, spinal cord and neck damage and rib and bone fractures are among the characteristic injuries of Shaken Baby Syndrome.

Extreme irritability, lethargy, poor feeding, breathing problems, convulsions, vomiting and pale or bluish skin are among the symptoms of the syndrome. The injuries usually occur in children younger than age 2, but may be seen in children up to age 5.

"The Edisto Medical Alliance will be working closely with the state to make sure that this information is out there for our mothers and fathers to help prevent Shaken Baby Syndrome. We're gonna do everything we can to make sure that this doesn't happen to our children," Gayle Delaney said.

Delaney is president of the Southern Medical Alliance, which is an alliance of physician's wives from across 16 states. The Edisto Medical Alliance includes wives from Orangeburg and Calhoun counties.

She said South Carolina Medical Alliance President Heather Yeh of Aiken is hoping that parents throughout the state will take time to watch the video, which was created by the Midwest Children's Resource Center in St. Paul, Minn.

"I hadn't thought about putting the video out there to the day care workers, but everybody needs to see this video. It's very short. It's not gonna take a lot of time, but it's very valuable. If we educate our parents first, maybe we can help our children even more," Delaney said.

Yeh has a personal interest in the bill. As a pediatric clinical care nurse, she got to see the devastating effects that shaking had on a four-month-old girl.

"She had been shaken so that she couldn't suck or grasp fingers. She required lifelong care. It all affected me. As I was looking at becoming president (of the S.C. Medical Alliance), I knew my focus was going to be on Shaken Baby Syndrome prevention and awareness," Yeh said.

"Starting Jan. 1, all state hospitals where babies are delivered will offer new parents the opportunity to watch a short video on the dangers of infant shaking," Yeh said. "It will offer tips for dealing with persistent crying, which is often the number-one trigger.

"The perpetrator just wants the baby to stop crying, and we need to make sure that caregivers know that shaking a baby is never a way to stop a baby from crying. There are other ways. Sometimes babies just cry. It's just what they do ... and that's OK."

She said babies that have been shaken have incredibly poor outcomes.

"Thirty percent will die. Of the survivors, 50 percent will suffer lifelong complications. Seconds of shaking can damage a baby forever, or kill it. It's completely preventable. For pennies of prevention, we could save millions of dollars in cure," Yeh said. "Luckily, the video will be offered to day care workers through DHEC ... and also be offered through the Department of Social Services to adopting parents."

What is so great about the video to her?

"You can tell someone, 'Don't shake a baby,' but if they have seen the video, they're going to have a clearer image in their head of exactly what it will do. Hospitals, if they wanted, could submit their own video to DHEC for approval. So, it's not mandatory that you use this particular one, but it's used in many states," Yeh said.

Edisto Medical Alliance President Catherine Hey of Orangeburg said she is grateful for the support of Sen. Brad Hutto, who amended the bill to include providing new parents and caregivers with information on the importance of infant CPR.

"Sen. Brad Hutto was very helpful in the passage of this legislation. He helped to rewrite the bill and helped it pass through the Senate. The medical alliance is very appreciative. A lot of people may understand what CPR is, but they may not understand how to perform CPR on a baby," Hey said.

"I think this is such a positive piece of legislation to address a problem that a lot of people don't know about. With all of the babies born at (the Regional Medical Center), maybe we can save the life of a child. Maybe we'll prevent some serious damage," she said.

T&D Staff Writer Dionne Gleaton can be reached by e-mail at dgleaton@timesanddemocrat.com or by phone at 803-533-5534. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

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