Virginia Apgar (* 7. June 1909 in Westfield, new jersey; "† 7 August 1974 in New York town center) was an outstanding Chirurgin and 1952 developed it the APGAR index.

Time as Chirurgin

It was spurred by the scientific activity and diseases of its brothers to become Medizinerin and was one of the best pupils of their college, where it became mA of the Zoologie. Virginia Apgar was one that, at that time like today, few women, who wanted to become Chirurgin. It completed its medicine study to the Columbia University, and belonged in the year 1933 to the first women, who made their exams at the there medical faculty. Their following Assistenzzeit completed it in the department for internal medicine at the outstanding Columbia University college OF Physicians and Surgeons. After two years it had successfully accomplished several hundred operations. Nevertheless Apgar under the conditions of the surgery controlled by men suffered. It put this fact not at all only to the men but also the women to the load:

"Women do not want to be operated by a Chirurgin. Only God knows, why."

Time as

Virginia Apgar turned to the anaesthesia therefore later. This field of activity lay in the US-American hospitals for a long time in the hands of women, i.e. from nurses. Here due to and the lengthier interferences ever more complicated urgently well trained were specialist inside used. 1938 became Apgar chief of the anaesthesia department of the Columbia University college OF Physicians and Surgeons. In the years of its activity it put here the bases for a new academic field of activity of the medicine. 1949 appointed it the university the first tidy Professorin for of the United States.

The APGAR index

see also: APGAR Score

Due to their experiences and observations in the anaesthesia and birth assistance Virginia Apgar developed an evaluation index, which found surprisingly fast acknowledgment and under its name in the year 1952 to geburtshilfliche practice was introduced. Since that time with this pattern five crucial aspects of the health of a newborn child are examined. Both the American and German initial letters of the five characteristics result in the name "APGAR":

• A = respiration
• P = pulse
• G = basic tonus (muscle tonus)
• A = appearance (skin color)
• R = reflexes

For the characteristics in each case 0 points (characteristics to be missing) become, 1 point (characteristics not minted) or 2 points (characteristics well available) assign and registered into investigation minutes; the maximum score is 10. One judges by collection times of 1, 5 and 10 minutes by the birth. "Matures" if newborn child shows, i.e. after 37 completed pregnancy weeks, no remarkablenesses and adapted it well, it remains on the with the nut/mother.

Many babies die due to not diagnosed damage, which worsens after the birth, in addition, due to lack or injuries during the birth procedure, as for instance brain bleedings, oxygen deficiency or a combination of such damages. Before the world-wide application Apgar index wrapped one newborn children simply into a cover and examined her later on the baby station. Breathing and cycle problems, which could have been treated easily, if they had been recognized immediately after the birth, led then often to complications with often lifelong consequences or to the death of the child. Virginia Apgar wrote in its book "Is my to baby universe ":

"The birth is the most dangerous time period of the life [...] it is urgently necessary to judge the state of health of newborn children rapidly and to diagnose arising disease symptoms immediately to be able to seize around suitable measures."

Virginia Apgar had been with approximately 17,000 births thereby, when she dedicated herself to 1959 of a new task: She took over the post of a directress of the March OF Dimes donation, where she made important contributions for the prevention of birth damage. Besides it strove untiringly to procure means for this donation. It succeeded to it to increase the annual receipts of 19 million dollar with its assumption of office to 46 millions. On the question, why she had never married, she explained once: "I found, for that to cook know evenly no man."

Virginia Apgar died on 7 August 1974 in New York town center. 1995 it to national the Women's resound to OF Fame of the USA taken up.

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