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Your Baby’s First Test: What the Apgar Score Means

The first test most babies are given — and which most pass with good scores — is the Apgar test. It was developed in 1952 by Dr. Virginia Apgar, who wanted a quick, simple way to check how newborns ...
STAT

It’s time to remove skin color from the Apgar Score for newborns

In medicine, inertia can be a strangely powerful force, but Virginia Apgar never succumbed to it. She brought incredible energy to her work in anesthesia, neonatology, and dysmorphology (the study of ...
The New York Times

Why Does a Routine Test of Newborns Reward ‘Pink’ Skin?

The Apgar test grades infants in five areas, including skin tone. Babies of color score lower, and may be subjected to unnecessary treatment. By Roni Caryn Rabin Shortly after they’re born, infants ...
Medscape

Low Apgar Scores Predict Poor Outcomes in Premature Infants

A 5-minute Apgar score < 7 was significantly associated with increased risks for in-hospital mortality, severe intraventricular haemorrhage (IVH), bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD), retinopathy of ...