THE CONTEXT
Perinatal or birth asphyxia is fetal or neonatal injury resulting from insufficient oxygen or organ perfusion. The passage describes its importance and the National Neonatology Forum of India criteria.
Mechanisms and significance
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Hypoxia means lack of oxygen, while ischemia means lack of perfusion to organs; either can cause perinatal asphyxia.
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Perinatal asphyxia is often associated with tissue lactic acidosis and hypercarbia.
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The passage estimates 900,000 deaths globally each year and identifies asphyxia as a primary cause of early neonatal mortality.
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Complications during childbirth are the most common cause of perinatal asphyxia.
Definition and severity criteria
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There is no universally accepted definition of perinatal asphyxia.
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The National Neonatology Forum of India uses the Apgar score at 1 minute to define severity: 0–3 indicates severe birth asphyxia and 4–7 indicates moderate birth asphyxia.