How should a newborn's heart rate be monitored during resuscitation?

Monitoring a newborn's heart rate during resuscitation is critical for assessing the effectiveness of the interventions being applied. The recommended approach is to use a stethoscope or a cardiac monitor, as these methods allow for real-time and accurate measurement of the heart rate.

Using a stethoscope enables the healthcare provider to listen directly to the heart sounds, facilitating a quick check of the heart rate, while a cardiac monitor provides continuous and electronic measurement, allowing for immediate feedback on the newborn's cardiovascular status. This information is essential in guiding further resuscitation efforts, as it helps determine whether the heart rate is improving or if additional interventions are needed.

Other methods, such as visual observation alone, may not provide a reliable assessment of the heart rate, as it can be difficult to accurately gauge heart rate visually without objective data. Likewise, while pulse oximetry is valuable for assessing oxygen saturation, it does not measure heart rate directly and thus is not a primary tool for monitoring heart rate during resuscitation. A thermometer is irrelevant for heart rate monitoring, as it is used to measure temperature, not cardiovascular function.