Infants Benefit from Delayed Umbilical Cord Clamping

Doctors should wait three minutes before clamping and cutting the umbilical cord after birth, according to a senior lecturer in obstetrics at the University of Liverpool. This recommendation is based on several studies that suggest early clamping may be harmful to the infant, particularly if the infant is born prematurely.

Clamping and cutting the umbilical cord almost immediately after labor is a common practice, which has no discernable adverse affect to the mother. However, Dr. Andrew Weeks said in a press release that evidence indicates an infant would benefit from a delayed clamping.

According to a press release, Dr. Weeks claims that delayed umbilical cord clamping could have numerous benefits for the baby. When the umbilical cord is unclamped after birth, the transfusion is equal to 21 percent of the infant's blood volume. Three quarters of the exchange occurs during the first minute after the birth.

For a normal birth of an at term infant, this transfusion gives a large amount of iron to the baby. This can be particularly beneficial in areas where anemia is common, and could potentially save the live of an infant. This delay is particularly critical in third world countries, where modern medical treatments are not always available.

For premature infants, the benefits are even better according to Weeks in the press release. Several studies have indicated that delaying reduces the chance of anemia, the need for a transfusion, and bleeding into the brain, all dangers to a premature infant.

In a normal birth, Weeks suggests laying the infant on the belly of the mother for three minutes before clamping and cutting the umbilical cord. For those born prematurely or by Caesarian section, he suggests waiting a minute before clamping, allowing most of the benefits of delaying the clamping to be transferred to the baby.

The evidence in the studies that Weeks cites have caused both the World Health Organization and the International Federation of Gynecology and Obstetrics to remove suggestions of early clamping from their guidelines.

Weeks suggests that the medicine should take the lead from these health organizations and studies and implement delayed clamping as a common practice.

Early clamping has been common over fears that delaying the procedure could increase the chance of jaundice, hyperbilirubinaemia, and polycythaemia. However, several studies indicate that this fear is unfounded.

SOURCES:

"Umbilical cord clamping should be delayed, says expert". Eurekalert. URL: (http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2007-08/bmj-ucc081607.php)