Child abuse. Its relationship to birthweight, apgar score, and developmental testing
E. Goldson, M. J. Fitch, T. A. Wendell and G. Knapp
Fifty-two abused and 23 nonabused children from a low socioeconomic group
were studied with respect to birthweight, five-minute Apgar score, and
developmental quotients. An association was found between low Apgar scores,
low birthweight, poor performance on developmental testing, and child
abuse. Furthermore, it was found that among children with normal
birthweights, abused children tended to have lower Apgar scores and
significantly lower developmental quotients. This study suggests that among
this group of children, abuse and subsequent poor performance may be
related not only to the socioeconomic status of the children but also to
the characteristics the child brings to the parent-child relationship and
to the abusive environment.
