Pierre Kory On Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Among Twins
Pierre Kory, the anti-vaccine influencer who tried to claim that the kids in Texas didn’t really die because they had measles is now talking about SIDS.
More specifically, Pierre Kory is talking about twins, vaccines, and SIDS, bring up a recent case in which twin 18-month-olds in Idaho were found dead in their crib, a week after receiving their vaccinations.
Pierre Kory On Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Among Twins
Hopefully, you already understand that vaccines are not associated with SIDS or sudden death in older children.
After all, we have written about it more than a few times recently, as anti-vaccine influencers continue to try to revive this old argument.
But could SIDS be associated with vaccines in twins?
Twins who have died of simultaneous SIDS or SIDS that takes place within the same 24-hour range for each twin?
Tragically, simultaneous SIDS does very rarely happen.
“A worldwide search of the medical literature resulted in the identification of 41 pairs of twins who died of SSIDS from 1900 to 1998.”
Simultaneous sudden infant death syndrome
Not surprisingly, there is no evidence that these deaths are related to vaccines though.
In a case report of Australian five-month-old twins, for example, we learn that they had received DTP and OPV vaccines three weeks before they died, and they had been congested.
“When the father went to get the infants at 9.30 a.m., he noticed they were much further down their cots than usual, and when he pulled the covers off the first twin, he was lying on his abdomen, "black" and cold, and had obviously been dead for quite a long time. He then pulled the covers off the other baby and found him also lying face down, obviously dead, although not as "black" as the first twin, and still warm.”
Simultaneous sudden death in infancy in identical twins
Also, they were found in their cribs on their stomachs, a common practice at the time.
A practice that is still too common and sadly, still contributes to many infant deaths.
“The probability that both twins may die of SIDS is extremely small, and the prob-ability of both twins dying of SIDS simultaneously is even smaller. The risk of a second twin dying of SIDS given that a first twin has already done so does not appear to be any greater than the risk of a temporally unrelated sibling dying of SIDS. We speculate that environmental factors may play a larger role in SIDS deaths among twins than hereditary factors and that attention to the same precautions for SIDS prevention among infants of single pregnancies, such as infant supine sleep position, are appropriate for infants of twin pregnancies.”
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome Among Twins
Including many of the simultaneous deaths among twins.
It also shouldn’t be a surprise that when Pierre Kory talks about a review of deaths of twins post-vaccination, in addition to cherry picking which studies he uses, he actively misrepresents some of the articles he does cite.
For example, while he includes the quote from Millard Bass’ article that ‘the likelihood of twin infants dying suddenly and simultaneously of SIDS, a natural disorder, defies credibility,’ he leaves out the main point of the article - that most of those infants died because of environmental hazards in their homes!
He also doesn’t mention any of the case reports of unvaccinated twins who either died of possible simultaneous SIDS or were the “victims of a combination of several environmental factors that led suddenly to death.”
“This article examines the potential contribution of specific environmental risk factors to the sudden and unexpected death in 45-day-old identical twin boys.”
Simultaneous Death of Twins: An Environmental Hazard or SIDS?
Of course, he likely doesn’t think that any of his readers will actually look up and read any of the references he cites…
Nor does he think that his readers will do any fact checking or further research!
“In 1985 twin boys simultaneously succumbed to sudden unexpected deaths two to three hours after vaccination with diphtheria, tetanus, and pertussis vaccine (DTP). This occurrence again raises the question of whether an association of sudden infant death (SID) with vaccination is other than temporal. Taking the incidence of SID in conjunction with rates of infant vaccination in the United Kingdom, nine infants would be expected to die, each year by chance alone, suddenly within 24 hours of (and within each 24 hour period succeeding) vaccination with DTP. Twins are at a greater risk of SID than single born infants and occasionally are found dead together. A number of studies into DTP vaccination as a risk factor in SID have shown that SID is less common in vaccinated than in unvaccinated infants.”
Vaccination and cot deaths in perspective
Or understand statistics.
While we now know that twins aren’t necessarily at increased risk for SIDS, after one infant has died, the other has the same risk of dying as any other infant. So in addition to the possibility of increased safety hazards in the home, there is still the chance of dying from simultaneous SIDS.
“Strong circumstancial evidence of nonnatural (accidental) death included sublethal levels of carbon monoxide (CO), overwrapping, and mechanical obstruction of upper airways. The literature concerning the phenomenon of simultaneous twin death is also reviewed.”
Simultaneous Death of Twins: An Environmental Hazard or SIDS?
Still, study after study after study has shown that vaccinations are not associated with SIDS.
Still not convinced?
Do you remember that the incidence of SIDS continued to rise after they stopped giving DPT vaccines in Sweden, only to finally drop when they instituted a back to sleep safety campaign?
How do you explain that if vaccines are associated with SIDS?
Also remember that like other anti-vaccine influencers, Pierre Kory has already been shown to be wrong many times in the past when he has talked about measles, COVID, and other things.
As David Gorski has also pointed out, Pierre Kory is certainly wrong when he makes the claim that vaccines cause SIDS.
References
Kahn A, Blum D, Muller MF, Montauk L, Bochner A, Monod N, Plouin P, Samson-Dollfus D, Delagree EH. Sudden infant death syndrome in a twin: a comparison of sibling histories. Pediatrics. 1986 Jul;78(1):146-50. PMID: 3725486.
Balci Y, Tok M, Kocaturk BK, Yenilmez C, Yirulmaz C. Simultaneous sudden infant death syndrome. J Forensic Leg Med. 2007 Feb;14(2):87-91. doi: 10.1016/j.jcfm.2006.01.004. PMID: 17654772.
Beal S. Simultaneous sudden death in infancy in identical twins. Med J Aust. 1973 Jun 9;1(23):1146-8. PMID: 4353505.
Malloy MH, Freeman DH Jr. Sudden infant death syndrome among twins. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 1999 Jul;153(7):736-40. doi: 10.1001/archpedi.153.7.736. PMID: 10401808.
Roberts SC. Vaccination and cot deaths in perspective. Arch Dis Child. 1987 Jul;62(7):754-9. doi: 10.1136/adc.62.7.754. PMID: 3498443; PMCID: PMC1779219.
Ramos V, Hernández AF, Villanueva E. Simultaneous death of twins. An environmental hazard or SIDS? Am J Forensic Med Pathol. 1997 Mar;18(1):75-8. doi: 10.1097/00000433-199703000-00014. PMID: 9095306.
Koehler SA, Ladham S, Shakir A, Wecht CH. Simultaneous sudden infant death syndrome: a proposed definition and worldwide review of cases. Am J Forensic Med Pathol. 2001 Mar;22(1):23-32. doi: 10.1097/00000433-200103000-00004. PMID: 11444657.
Smialek JE. Simultaneous sudden infant death syndrome in twins. Pediatrics. 1986 Jun;77(6):816-21. PMID: 3754958.
Fact Check: Dr. Pierre Kory Did NOT Prove Texas Measles Death Announcement Was '100% False' -- Assertions Not Backed With Evidence https://leadstories.com/hoax-alert/2025/04/fact-check-pierre-kory-did-not-prove-measles-did-not-kill-second-texas-measles-victim.html
There are no coincidences to the timing of death after vaccination.