Cord Management of the Term Newborn

Ola Andersson; Judith S Mercer

doi:10.1016/j.clp.2021.05.002

Cord Management of the Term Newborn

Clin Perinatol. 2021 Aug;48(3):447-470. doi: 10.1016/j.clp.2021.05.002.

Authors

Ola Andersson¹, Judith S Mercer²

Affiliations

¹ Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund, Pediatrics, Lund University, SE-221 85 Lund, Sweden; Department of Neonatology, Skåne University Hospital, Jan Waldenströms gata 47, Malmö SE-214 28, Sweden. Electronic address: ola.andersson@med.lu.se.
² Neonatal Research Institute at Sharp Mary Birch Hospital for Women and Newborns, San Diego, CA, USA; University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI, USA.

PMID: 34353575
DOI: 10.1016/j.clp.2021.05.002

Abstract

Keeping the umbilical cord intact after delivery facilitates transition from fetal to neonatal circulation and allows a placental transfusion of a considerable amount of blood. A delay of at least 3 minutes improves neurodevelopmental outcomes in term infants. Although regarded as common sense and practiced by many midwives, implementation of delayed cord clamping into practice has been unduly slow, partly because of beliefs regarding theoretic risks of jaundice and lack of understanding regarding the long-term benefits. This article provides arguments for delaying cord clamping for a minimum of 3 minutes.

Keywords: Delivery; Placental transfusion; Resuscitation; Term; Umbilical cord clamping.

Publication types

Review

MeSH terms

Blood Transfusion
Constriction
Female
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Placenta*
Pregnancy
Time Factors
Umbilical Cord* / surgery