| Concerns about umbilical cord clamping |
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| Home -------- Site Map Apgar Oxygen an urgent ongoing need Transition fetal to postnatal circulation Tradition Protocols Outcomes >>Concerns (NCS p9) Question Authority References Links Notes Contact: Eileen Nicole Simon eileen4brainresearch@yahoo.com |
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| Evidence versus opinion |
Increased prevalence of childhood disorders |
Dependency and need for lifelong care |
Factors in need of closer examination |
References |
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| 8. Evidence versus opinion The evidence from the research with monkeys has been neglected too long. Windle, Myers and other investigators held the opinion that brainstem damage was insignificant and at most responsible for minimal dysfunction [67, 70]. But can any damage within the brain be considered minimal? |
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| Umbilical cord clamping is a tradition based on opinion. It is understandable how clamping the cord might in the past have been thought of as a way to prevent hemorrhage. The thinking that polycythemia and jaundice could be prevented by clamping the cord is more recent. But bilirubin-staining of the brain is selective for particular subcortical nuclei, recognized early-on as the same sites vulnerable to ischemic damage [77-87]. |
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| Placental blood is not superfluous; it is not blood that might overload the circulatory system of the infant, nor should it be discarded or stored for possible use in the future. Placental blood is part of an infant's prenatal circulatory system, essential for respiration. The lungs need the placental blood before they can take over the respiratory functions. |
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| 9. Increased prevalence of childhood disorders Prevalence of autism, attention deficit disorder, asthma, diabetes, and other childhood conditions appear to have increased dramatically over the past decade or two. Some of these may be the unintended outcomes of the protocol for immediate umbilical cord clamping, which has become standard practice during the same period of time. Follow-up studies must be conducted far longer than discharge from neonatal care nurseries. Language development is the most important early outcome to investigate. |
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| Posted: February 27, 2006 (a work in progress) |
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| Evidence versus opinion |