Who may be assessed with the APIB?
Preterm and fullterm newborns Preterm infants, who may be brought into an examining room (e.g., parent room) and handled, typically 32 weeks post menstrual age and older, are appropriate for examination. Individualized, knowledgeable judgment is required to determine the appropriateness of an APIB assessment at very early ages and/or levels of great sensitivity or significant illness. Infants, who are still too fragile or ill, may better be assessed with Newborn Individualized Developmental Care and Assessment Program (NIDCAP) observations and/or the beginnings of the APIB examination at their bedsides, without movement to a special examination room. Well developing fullterm infants may be productively assessed with the APIB to approximately 44 weeks post menstrual age. For preterm infants and high risk full term infants the evaluation may still be appropriate for several weeks beyond that. Pairing the APIB with the Bayley Scales of Infant Development, Third Edition is a useful option
