The Neonatal Skin Condition Score (NSCS) can be used to describe the condition of a neonate's skin. This can help to identify a neonate who may benefit from an intervention and can be used to monitor the neonate over time.
Parameters:
(1) dryness
(2) erythema
(3) skin breakdown
Parameter
Finding
Points
dryness
none (normal)
1
dry with visible scaling
2
very dry with fissuring and cracking
3
erythema
none (normal)
1
< 50% of body surface area (BSA)
2
>= 50% of body surface area (BSA)
3
skin breakdown
none (normal)
1
small, localized
2
extensive
3
where:
• An alternative would be to score normal as 0 rather than 1.
total score =
= SUM(points for all 3 parameters)
Interpretation:
• minimum score: 3
• maximum score: 9
• The higher the score the worse the skin condition.
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