What it does
Two of the best-known scores in medicine are simple sums, but students and new staff often mix up the wording or the order. This page lays each one out as a short list of plain descriptions. Tap the one that fits and the page adds it up.
- APGAR describes a newborn baby a minute or a few minutes after birth: skin colour (Appearance), heart rate (Pulse), response to stimulation (Grimace), muscle tone (Activity) and breathing (Respiration). Each scores 0, 1 or 2, so the total is 0 to 10. Virginia Apgar proposed it in 1953.
- The Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) describes how awake and responsive a person is, from three parts: eye opening (E, 1 to 4), the best verbal response (V, 1 to 5) and the best motor response (M, 1 to 6). The total runs from 3 to 15. Graham Teasdale and Bryan Jennett published it in 1974; the 15-point form with “abnormal flexion” as its own step followed in 1976.
The descriptions on this page are written in our own words. They are not the official charts, which come with training on how to give the stimulus and judge the response.
How to use it
- APGAR: choose the minute (1, 5 or 10) and tap one line for each of the five signs. The total appears with the band commonly used: 7 to 10 reassuring, 4 to 6 moderately abnormal, 0 to 3 low.
- GCS: choose the wording. Adult and older child is for anyone who can talk and follow a command. Young child swaps the verbal and motor lines for ones that suit a baby or toddler (coos and babbles, cries, moves on their own); eye opening stays the same.
- Tap the best response for eyes, verbal and motor. The result is written the standard way, such as E3V4M5 = 12, with the band often used after head injury: 13 to 15 mild, 9 to 12 moderate, 3 to 8 severe.
- If a part cannot be tested, such as speech with a breathing tube in place or eyes swollen shut, choose Not testable. The part is written NT and no total is given, because adding up a missing part would be misleading.
- Download saves the scores as an image, a PDF or a Word file for notes or a practice log.
Worked example
The page opens with a baby whose body is pink but hands and feet blue (1), heart rate over 100 (2), who grimaces when stimulated (1), moves actively (2) and cries well (2). It shows APGAR at 1 minute: 8 / 10, in the 7 to 10 band.
The GCS example is a person whose eyes open when spoken to (E3), who talks in muddled sentences (V4) and moves a hand towards a firm squeeze (M5). The page shows E3V4M5 = 12, in the 9 to 12 band. If that person then had a breathing tube, choosing Not testable for verbal gives E3VNTM5 and no total.
Tips
- Always pass on the three GCS parts, not only the total. Two people with a total of 8 can be in very different states.
- Score the best response you see. For motor, use the better side.
- An APGAR score describes the baby at that moment. Resuscitation does not wait for the 1-minute score.
Frequently asked questions
Why is the lowest GCS 3 and not 0? Each part starts at 1 for no response, so a person with no response at all scores E1V1M1 = 3.
Is the paediatric GCS a different scale? It keeps the same numbers and adds age-suitable wording for the verbal and motor parts. Several versions exist; check the one your service uses.
Does the page store anything? No. Nothing you tap is stored or sent anywhere.
For study and teaching, not medical advice. Check with a qualified professional.
Where the numbers come from
- APGAR: Apgar V. (1953), A proposal for a new method of evaluation of the newborn infant, Current Researches in Anesthesia and Analgesia 32:260-267.
- GCS: Teasdale G., Jennett B. (1974), Assessment of coma and impaired consciousness, The Lancet 304:81-84; 15-point form: Teasdale and Jennett (1976), Acta Neurochirurgica 34:45-55.
- Paediatric GCS wording: after James H.E. and Trauner D.A. (1985), in Brain Insults in Infants and Children. All item wording on this page is our own.
Standard scientific values, such as constants, atomic weights and melting points, are facts found in every textbook; we name where ours were checked. If you are an author or publisher and want a value, a credit or a table changed or removed, tell us and we will act quickly.
Last updated 2026-11-09.