What are some risks of delayed cord clamping?
There are a few, but the majority of the risks are minor. More studies are making universal delayed cord clamping seem beneficial for all babies.
Delayed cord clamping is the practice of doing just what it sounds like: waiting to place clamps on the umbilical cord, rather than doing it immediately after a baby is born. Exactly how long the time period is from birth to the actual clamping is not strictly defined in delayed cord clamping, but most obstetric providers agree that delayed cord clamping constitutes waiting at least 30 to 60 seconds to clamp the cord.
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists now recommends this practice for all healthy newborns. They do acknowledge some risks associated with the practice, however:
- Increased risk of jaundice and the additional testing and phototherapy treatment that may result from it.
- Increased risk of maternal hemorrhage during the time that is spent waiting to clamp the cord.
Newer reviews conclude that the above risks are very infrequent, and in most cases the benefits of delayed cord clamping outweigh the risks.
The increased risk of jaundice confuses me. Why would there be an increased risk? My son was jaundiced without delayed cord clamping, and so was my best friend’s son (so much so that he required a bili-blanket for 24 hours). They were both full-term babies with no delayed cord clamping. I’m just wondering what causes the increased jaundice risk in term babies?
In regards to delayed cord clamping, the increased risk in jaundice is because the cord is left alone for a longer period of time and the baby actually gets more blood from the placenta. A higher red blood cell level could put the baby at a higher risk for jaundice because jaundice is when those red blood cells get broken down into the product bilirubin (which makes their skin yellow). Essentially having more red blood cells can lead to more bilirubin. The reason babies who are full term and healthy (and may not have had delayed cord clamping) may still get jaundice can be for a few different reasons. One common one is related to the compatibility of their blood type and their mother’s. It can also be because of dehydration or poor feeding. We’ve got more info here to help explain: http://www.bundoo.com/articles/jaundice-in-newborns/