The state of newborns is assessed by doctors from the first minutes of their life. It is necessary to determine how much intensive attention from the staff they will need. The criteria for the primary evaluation of three are the weight and height of the baby, as well as the Apgar scores. It is about the latter that we will tell, explaining how points are earned and what their amount is indicative of.
What does the Apgar scale mean?
Apgar system was introduced in 1952. Criteria for assessing the state of newborns on a scale were proposed by Virginia Apgar, an American anesthesiologist. The essence of it is that in the first and fifth minutes of life, doctors assess the state of the child on five grounds. Each of them is assigned a certain score - from 0 to 2.
Apgar scale criteria
The main points of the Apgar assessment are:
- color of the skin;
- breath;
- heart rate;
- muscle tone;
- reflexes.
Color of the skin. The skin of a baby has a normal color from pale pink to bright pink. This color is estimated at 2 points. If the handles and legs have a bluish tint, doctors put 1 point, and with pale and cyanotic skin - 0 points.
Breath. The frequency of respiration of an infant is normally estimated on the Apgar scale in 2 points. As a rule, it is about 45 breaths / exhalations per minute, while the baby screams shrilly. If the breathing is intermittent, difficult, and the newborn screams poorly, 1 point is put to it. Not a single point is added to the overall indicators with complete absence of breath and silence of the baby.
A heart. According to Apgar table, heart rate above 100 beats per minute is estimated at 2 points. A lower rhythm takes 1 point, and a total absence of heart beat is noted by experts at 0 points.
Muscle tone. In newborn babies, the tone of the flexor muscles is increased due to the special position during intrauterine development. They chaotic waving their arms and legs, their movements are not coordinated. This behavior is estimated at 2 points. Infants, who have few movements that are non-intensive, receive an Apgar score of 1 point.
Reflexes. The child from birth has a certain set of unconditioned reflexes, which include
What does the Apgar score mean?
Points assigned to a child are, in fact, the result of a subjective assessment and can not be reliably judged on the child's state of health. Their significance according to the Apgar scale is to assess whether a newborn needs a resuscitation or more careful observation of his health in the first days of life.