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The umbilical cord is a cord that connects the mother with her child while the baby is still in her womb. It helps with the exchange of nutrients as well as excreta between the baby and the mother's body. However, that's not where the benefits of the umbilical cord are limited. An umbilical cord has several major advantages throughout the child's life and the family. This is why umbilical cord blood banking is prevalent these days. An important step in cord blood banking process is umbilical cord clamping.
What Is Umbilical Cord Clamping?
The umbilical cord is the joining unit, which attaches the baby to the mother's body via the placenta. Placenta supplies this cord with blood, where the major exchange of nutrients and excreta occurs. During the birthing process, this cord has to be cut to separate the mother from the baby. A nipper is used to restrict the blood from the placenta to the umbilical cord. Another nipper is placed just ahead of the belly button of the baby, after which the cord is clamped from both ends.
Parents actively preserve the umbilical cord in a special umbilical cord blood bank. The umbilical cord blood is hematopoietic in nature, containing several stem cells. These cells help in curing blood disorders, immunological diseases, etc. The clamping must be done before 30 seconds or after 1 minute of childbirth.
Types of Umbilical Cord Clamping
Depending on the time taken to cut the umbilical cord after birth, there are two types of clamping techniques, as follows:
- Delayed Umbilical Cord Clamping
Delayed umbilical cord clamping is a technique where the clamping is done after 1 or 2 minutes of childbirth. This technique is being actively used for several babies, especially premature babies. The baby can take more blood back into the body during delayed umbilical cord clamping. Several studies have indicated that this helps boost haemoglobin levels and improves the body's iron reserves.
Read also: Is it Safe to Delay Cord Clamping?
Such babies are less indicated to face blood-related problems and neonatal jaundice after birth. In preterm babies, delayed umbilical cord clamping helps reduce the need for blood transfusion and helps in boosting the volume of red blood cells in the blood.
- Early Umbilical Cord Clamping
Early umbilical cord clamping is a technique where the umbilical cord is cut within 30 seconds of childbirth. If there is heavy bleeding during delivery, that is, postpartum haemorrhage, or if the child has to be treated immediately after birth, the early umbilical cord clamping technique is used.
Wrapping Up
The baby's cord blood is popularly stored in any cord blood bank in India due to its advantages. There are several ongoing kinds of research in process in terms of the usage of cord blood. When it comes to cord clamping and the technique used, it is mainly decided by the surgeon performing the child delivery. However, in most cases, the delayed umbilical cord clamping technique is preferred over the early cord blood clamping, as it has major benefits for the child. If you are looking for an umbilical cord blood bank, check out Cryoviva. We securely provide cord blood storage facilities at the most affordable rates in India!
Related topics:
Information for Umbilical Cord Blood Preservation
What is Umbilical Cord Preservation Cost in India
Baby’s Umbilical Cord Storage in India
Stem Cell Banking — A Hope for HIV Treatment
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