Late cord clamping prevents anaemia in infants

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1: Trop Doct. 2004 Oct;34(4):218-22.

The early effects of delayed cord clamping in term infants born to

Libyan

mothers.

Emhamed MO, van Rheenen P, Brabin BJ.

Child and Reproductive Health Group, Liverpool School of Tropical

Medicine,

Liverpool, UK.

This study was conducted to evaluate the haematological effects of the

timing of

umbilical cord clamping in term infants 24 h after birth in Libya.

Mother-infant

pairs were randomly assigned to early cord clamping (within 10s after

delivery)

or delayed clamping (after the cord stopped pulsating). Maternal

haematological

status was assessed on admission in the delivery room. Infant

haematological

status was evaluated in cord blood and 24 h after birth. Bilirubin

concentration

was assessed at 24 h. 104 mother-infant pairs were randomized to delayed

(n=58)

or early cord clamping (n=46). At baseline the groups had similar

demographic

and biomedical characteristics, except for a difference in maternal

haemoglobin,

which was significantly higher in the early clamping group (11.7 g/dL,

SD 1.3

g/dL versus 10.9 g/dL, SD 1.6 g/dL; P=0.0035). Twenty-four hours after

delivery

the mean infant haemoglobin level was significantly higher in the

delayed

clamping group (18.5 g/dL versus 17.1 g/dL; P=0.0005). No significant

differences were found in clinical jaundice or plethora. Surprisingly,

blood

analysis showed that two babies in the early clamping group had total

serum

bilirubin levels (> 15 mg/dL) that necessitated phototherapy. There were

no

babies in the late clamping group who required phototherapy. Three

infants in

the delayed clamping group had polycythaemia without symptoms, for which

no

partial exchange transfusion was necessary. Delaying cord clamping until

the

pulsations stop increases the red cell mass in term infants. It is a

safe,

simple and low cost delivery procedure that should be incorporated in

integrated

programmes aimed at reducing iron deficiency anaemia in infants in

developing

countries.

PMID: 15510946 [PubMed - in process]