The breathing becomes very hurried - forty to sixty respirations in the minute - and the face dusky.
The patient is quite unconscious, the eyes are motionless, the pupils dilated, the skin cold and moist, the limbs relaxed, the pulse is slow and barely perceptible, the respirations very slow and convulsive.
Narcotic analgesics should be used with care when taken in combination with drugs that inhibit respirations, such as the benzodiazepines.
Skin color is related to the newborn's ability to oxygenate its body and extremities and is dependent on heart rate and respirations.
Respirations are best assessed by watching the rise and fall of the neonate's abdomen since infants are diaphragmatic breathers.