Prospective study compares scoring systems for assessing neonatal abstinence syndrome, suggesting NASSCORES as preferred due to reliability and accuracy.
Objective This study compares the Finnegan Score and NASSCORES for assessing neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS), focusing on interrater reliability (IRR), accuracy, and provider preference. Study design This prospective study involved 75 neonatal providers who assessed two standardized videos of newborns with NAS using both the Finnegan score and NASSCORES. Participants scored each video with both tools and completed a Likert-based preference survey. Intraclass correlation coefficient ICC(2,1) was used to measure IRR. Result NASSCORES showed a higher IRR compared with the Finnegan score and greater scoring accuracy for both videos. Most neonatal providers favored NASSCORES for faster computation, easier use, better treatment guidance, and overall satisfaction, with fewer concerns about its clinical utility. Conclusion NASSCORES outperformed Finnegan Score in this standardized video study, indicating its potential as a more practical scoring tool for NAS. Further validation in clinical settings is recommended.
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Iqubal et al. (2026) studied this question.
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