Agpar Score- Know the Story Behind this Birth Injury Indicator

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What Is an Apgar Score?

Named after and invented by the American anaesthesiologist Virginia Apgar, the Apgar score started to be used by medical professionals in 1952. The Apgar score is a method used by medical personnel to determine the physical health of a newborn right after birth.

Specifically, the baby is measured one minute after birth - and then the infant is usually tested again within five minutes of the first test. In certain cases, the Apgar score process may be repeated every five minutes. The respiratory system, heart rate, skin color, muscle tone, and nostril response to a catheter are measured - and they are given a score of 0, 1, or 2 points - based on the test results. AboutKidsHealth has a table of the scoring.

A baby can have a perfect Apgar score of 10 - but scores rarely go higher than 9 out of 10. Conversely, if an infant scores really low on this scale - and receives an Apgar score of between 0 and 3 for instance - the infant needs to be resuscitated right away. Moreover, the low Apgar score may indicate that disease may be in the child's future. However, it is important to realize that an Apgar score does not always tell the full story regarding an infant's future health prognosis.

For instance, a baby may have trouble breathing during the first minute of the infant's life due to amniotic fluid being in the child's lungs. However, once the baby clears this fluid out naturally, the baby may have no trouble breathing at all. A very low Apgar score can still in fact indicate that all is not well with a baby - and in this case, the infant may be transferred to a nursery or even another hospital that specializes in neonatal care.

If you have a child that has scored low on this test and it is due to negligence, do not hesitate to contact us today to determine what the next steps will be regarding compensation and your legal rights.