Anyone else had apgar score of 4? Short and long term experience?

[mmm2020]

Hi all,

My son was born at full term a few days ago and came out in shock and not breathing.

Luckily his heart rate was still normal and managed to get Oxygen via hand pump straight away, however because there was potentially a few minutes during birth where he was without enough oxygen, he was placed on a ventilator (took around 40mins from birth to ventilator) for 10 hours and now breathing on his own. He's also been placed on a cooling mat for 72 hours to protect his brain. Ecg has been normal so far.

His apgar score was 3 at 1 min then 4 at 5. Some acid in his blood due to being oxygen deprived which has been treated.

He has an MRI in a few days to check for damage to his brain.

I've been searching the forum for others with Apgar score of 3 or 4 and what MRI results came back for you.

Thank you for any experiences you may share

Mine scored 2 and he needed NICU and had neonatal seizures.. he had developmental delays and severe speech delay. He also has a permanent visual impairment but otherwise is a healthy teenager!

@Will2022bebetter @AutumnColours9 thank you so much for replying and sharing your experiences, so happy that they are all doing so well now ❤️

@ok2020 how are things going?

Hi Jessica, thanks for checking

Just to give you and everyone else who has been so kind to share their experience an update.

It's now been past 72-hours so they have taken him off the cooling mat treatment (therapeutic hypothermia) and morphine (to help with the discomfort of being cold) and begun warming his body slowly.

This is the point where any seizures or indicators of damage will begin to show on the aEEg, ultrasound and blood tests as the body is going back to it's usual function.

He's also now able to be tested properly as he's been sedated and sleepy for 3 days now so they can do physical tests (can he suck, nurse, react to things, stiffen limbs).

Although it's just started, the positives are that the aEEg is still consistent and not showing any seizures since he's been hooked up which is a positive. They've also been doing blood tests and ultrasounds on his brain everyday and nothing has come up, but they've stressed that the warming up period is critical to monitor changes.

He does seem very sleepy still, not really crying at all. I can't tell if that's a concern. He's breathing harder than normal as he has secretions that arent clearing so they put him on a bit of oxygen to help.

This could be because he had a tube down his throat to help him breath and could be swollen and sore. He doesn't have much of loud cry when he does.

The next step is to get him off the oxygen then to an MRI for an assessment, he might be in for another 3-4 days

also just wanted to say this thread and DMs have been so incredibly helpful, cant thank you all enough

That’s great news! I have everything crossed for you and your baby boy. But I also wanted to add that your little boy will have their own unique character and personality and will charm you, whatever your path looks like.

There are times when I wish my eldest’s birth had been different; I am convinced that his autism is related to oxygen deprivation and it makes looking after him complicated and draining. But it’s also responsible for some of his more wonderful qualities and they are numerous.

Please also be kind to yourself. Having a baby in NICU is so far removed from what we imagine for ourselves that it can really take it out of you.