A health test given to babies minutes after they are born could reveal how well they will do in secondary school, it has been claimed.
A study of 877,000 Swedish teenagers compared school exam results with their Apgar scores after birth. This is the largest ever study to look at the link between cognitive ability in teenagers and the Apgar test.

The Apgar is a test which rates the newborn's health on a scale of one to ten and how much medical attention the child needs. It has been used in the delivery room since it was devised by American Dr Virginia Apgar in 1952.

Researchers found a link between an Apgar score of below seven and lower intelligence in later life.

Dr. Andrea Stuart, an obstetrician at Central Hospital in Helsingborg, Sweden, said: "It is not the Apgar score in itself that leads to lower cognitive abilities. It is the reasons leading to a low Apgar score (including asphyxiation, preterm delivery, maternal drug use, infections) that might have an impact on future brain function."

Researchers also made the point that only one in 44 newborns with a low Apgar score went on to need special education, so mothers of babies who had low scores did not have cause for concern.

Dr Richard Polin, director of neonatology at Columbia University Medical Center and a member of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Fetus and Newborn, said:"Most babies who have Apgar scores of seven or less do perfectly fine."

The study will appear in next month's issue of the journal Obstetrics & Gynecology.






据《每日邮报》22日报道，一项研究称：婴儿出生后的健康测试可以透露其今后的中学成绩。


这项研究以87.7万名瑞典青少年为对象，分析他们出生后得到的阿普加评分和在校考试成绩之间的关系。这是探求青少年认知能力和阿普加评分之间联系的最大规模的实验。



阿普加评分是用来评估新生儿健康水平的测试，根据婴儿需要医疗看护的程度，阿普加评估的分数在1分到10分之间。自1952年美国弗吉尼亚•阿普加博士发明以来，阿普加评分就一直应用于产房。


研究者们发现7分以下的阿普加评分和婴儿今后较低的智力水平有一定的联系。


瑞典赫尔辛堡中央医院产科医生安德烈娅•斯图尔特说:"并非阿普加评分本身导致婴儿认知能力偏低，而是窒息、早产、母亲用药、感染等导致评分偏低的因素可能对孩子今后大脑功能产生影响。"




不过，经研究人员验证，在评分较低的新生儿中，平均每44个人中仅1人需接受特殊教育。所以，如果新生儿的阿普加评分偏低，家长没必要过度担忧。



美国哥伦比亚大学医疗中心新生儿科主任、美国儿科学会胎儿和新生儿委员会成员理查德•波林说："阿普加评分为7分或更低的孩子，大多数也能表现的很好。"


这项研究将会刊登于在美国《产科学与妇科学》杂志8月刊。

• secondary [´sekəndəri, -deri] a.第二的；次要的 (初中英语单词)
• ability [ə´biliti] n.(办事)能力；才干 (初中英语单词)
• medical [´medikəl] a.医学的；医疗的 (初中英语单词)
• virginia [və´dʒinjə] n.佛吉尼亚(州) (初中英语单词)
• intelligence [in´telidʒəns] n.智力；消息 (初中英语单词)
• director [di´rektə] n.指导者；....长；导演 (初中英语单词)
• columbia [kə´lʌmbiə] n.哥伦比亚 (初中英语单词)
• academy [ə´kædəmi] n.专科学校；学会；协会 (初中英语单词)
• journal [´dʒə:nəl] n.日记；日报；杂志 (初中英语单词)
• delivery [di´livəri] n.送交；分娩；交货 (高中英语单词)
• sweden [´swi:dn] n.瑞典 (高中英语单词)
• perfectly [´pə:fiktli] ad.理想地；完美地 (高中英语单词)
• swedish [´swi:diʃ] a.瑞典人 n.瑞典语 (英语四级单词)
• maternal [mə´tə:nl] a.母亲的；母性(系)的 (英语四级单词)
• impact [´impækt] n.影响，作用；冲击 (英语六级单词)