User:Michelle Bui/sandbox

APGAR Scoring
All nurses working in a birthing centre have an important role in assessing the newborn immediately after birth. The assessment of the neonate's appearance (colour), pulse (heart rate), grimace (in response to unpleasant stimuli such as bulb suctioning the pharynx), activity (muscle tone and/or movement), and respiratory effort via the APGAR scoring system is essential to guide the baby's care (see Understanding the APGAR scoring system). The nurse is often directly responsible for assigning the APGAR scores at 1 and 5 minutes of life. Each of the five assessment areas is given a score of 0, 1, or 2. The maximum score possible is 10. Scores of 7 or above are considered normal for full-term newborns. If the total score is below 7, or any area is scored 0 at 5 minutes of life, resuscitation efforts and scoring should continue every 5 minutes until 20 minutes of life. At 10 minutes neonates with a low APGAR score of 3 or lower are at risk of having neurological dysfunctions and cerebral palsy in the future although there is no guarantee. Despite how every individual's case varies; as time goes by with the score not improving the risk becomes higher. However there are numerous other factors to take into consideration when determining future complications, an APGAR score cannot do it alone.

Beyond assessing the five components that make up the APGAR score, it's essential to understand its meaning. The APGAR score assigned at 1 minute of life reflects how the fetus tolerated the in utero environment and/or the labor and delivery process. All subsequent APGAR scores reflect the newborn's response to interventions during the transition from intrauterine to extra-uterine life. There are, however, multiple different factors that can impact the APGAR score which include anesthesia, gestational age and initial lower oxygen. Nursing interventions include keeping the baby warm, stimulating the baby to breathe, giving breaths to the baby who isn't breathing well, and performing chest compression if needed.