Placental blood transfusion in premature infants

BACKGROUND: Delayed cord clamping (DCC, ≥30 s) increases blood volume in newborns and is associated with fewer blood transfusions and short-term neonatal complications. The optimal timing of cord clamping for very preterm infants should maximize placental transfusion without interfering with stabilization and resuscitation. AIM: We compared the effect of different durations of DCC, 30-45 s vs. 60-75 s, on delivery room (DR) and neonatal outcomes in preterm infants <32 weeks gestational age (GA)...

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Delayed cord clamping (DCC) is recommended for premature infants to improve blood volume. Most preterm infants are born by cesarean delivery (CD), and placental transfusion may be less effective than in vaginal delivery (VD). We sought to determine whether infants <32 weeks born by CD who undergo umbilical cord milking (UCM) have higher measures of systemic blood flow than infants who undergo DCC. METHODS: This was a 2-center trial. Infants delivered by CD were randomly assigned to undergo UCM or DCC...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the maternal and perinatal outcomes of pregnancies delivered at 23+0 to 23+6 weeks' gestation. METHODS: This prospective cohort study included women in the Canadian Perinatal Network who were admitted to one of 16 Canadian tertiary perinatal units between August 1, 2005, and March 31, 2011, and who delivered at 23+0 to 23+6 weeks' gestation. Women were included in the network if they were admitted with spontaneous preterm labour with contractions, a short cervix without contractions, prolapsing membranes with membranes at or beyond the external os or a dilated cervix, preterm premature rupture of membranes, intrauterine growth restriction, gestational hypertension, or antepartum hemorrhage...

OBJECTIVE: To compare two strategies to potentiate the effects of placental transfusion in infants born at <29 weeks of gestation. STUDY DESIGN: Twenty infants who received one-time umbilical cord milking after umbilical cord cutting were compared with 20 infants from a previous study group who received multiple-time umbilical cord milking. The primary outcome measurements were the probability of not needing a red blood cell (RBC) transfusion during the hospital stay and the total number of RBC transfusions within 21 days after birth...

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the effects of interventions promoting placental transfusion at delivery (delayed cord clamping or umbilical cord milking) compared with early cord clamping on outcomes among premature neonates of less than 32 weeks of gestation. DATA SOURCES: A systematic search was conducted of PubMed, Embase, and ClinicalTrials.gov databases (January 1965 to December 2013) for articles relating to placental transfusion strategies in very preterm neonates...

BACKGROUND: Risks and benefits of increasing placental transfusion in extremely preterm infants (extremely low birthweight [ELBW], <1000 g) are ill defined. We performed a meta-analysis to compare long- and short-term outcomes of ELBW infants in trials of enhanced placental transfusion regimens. STUDY DESIGN AND METHODS: We conducted a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials (RCTs) of delayed umbilical cord clamping or umbilical cord milking in compliance with PRISMA and Cochrane Collaborative guidelines for systematic reviews...

Immediate umbilical cord clamping after delivery is routine in the United States despite little evidence to support this practice. Numerous trials in both term and preterm neonates have demonstrated the safety and benefit of delayed cord clamping. In premature neonates, delayed cord clamping has been shown to stabilize transitional circulation, lessening needs for inotropic medications and reducing blood transfusions, necrotizing enterocolitis, and intraventricular hemorrhage. In term neonates, delayed cord clamping has been associated with decreased iron-deficient anemia and increased iron stores with potential valuable effects that extend beyond the newborn period, including improvements in long-term neurodevelopment...

PURPOSE: To present our experience in the perinatal management of fetuses with large oropharyngeal tumors by ex utero intrapartum treatment (EXIT). METHODS: We performed a retrospective chart review of all patients with congenital oropharyngeal tumor who underwent an EXIT procedure between May 2006 and June 2012. RESULTS: Four patients were included in the series, three females and one male. The diagnoses were epignathus (n=2) and congenital epulis (n=2)...

Deferring cord clamping allows blood flow between baby and placenta to continue for a few moments. This often leads to increased neonatal blood volume at birth. It also allows for longer transition to the neonatal circulation. Optimal timing for clamping the cord remains uncertain. This paper discusses the physiology of placental transfusion and presents the evidence from systematic reviews of randomised trials comparing alternative strategies for cord clamping for both term and preterm births. For healthy term infants, deferring cord clamping increases iron stores in infancy...

The timing of umbilical cord clamping remains controversial. Although most maternity wards use the early clamping (5-15s), randomized studies and meta-analyses have demonstrated the benefit of delayed clamping for term and preterm newborn infants over the past 10 years. Indeed, placentofetal transfusion of 20-30 ml/kg in 2-3 min improves the iron status of term infants and prevents infant hypochromic anemia. Infant anemia is a public health problem in many developing countries. For preterm newborns, placental transfusion for 45 s or milking the cord for 15 s improves cardiovascular adaptation, with better hemodynamic stability, as well as decreased intraventricular hemorrhages, need for transfusion, and late-onset sepsis...

OBJECTIVE: Delayed cord clamping has been shown to decrease the need for transfusion in preterm neonates, but may delay resuscitation. The aim of this study was to determine whether umbilical cord milking compared with immediate cord clamping in extremely preterm deliveries reduces the need for neonatal red blood cell transfusion. STUDY DESIGN: Women admitted to a tertiary care center and expected to deliver between 24 to 28 completed weeks of gestation were randomized to cord milking before clamping or immediate cord clamping...

Once Umbilical Cord with Placenta considered a biological waste product and generally discarded after delivery but now cord blood has emerged as a viable source of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. High-risk premature infants require red cell transfusions for anemia. A unique property of cord blood (CB) for its high content of immature hematopoietic progenitor cells (HPCs). Placental blood for autologous transfusions can be collected with aseptic precaution/sterilely into citrate-phosphate-dextrose and stored at 4°C...

BACKGROUND: Optimal timing for clamping the umbilical cord at preterm birth is unclear. Early clamping allows for immediate transfer of the infant to the neonatologist. Delaying clamping allows blood flow between the placenta, the umbilical cord and the baby to continue. The blood which transfers to the baby between birth and cord clamping is called placental transfusion. Placental transfusion may improve circulating volume at birth, which may in turn improve outcome for preterm infants...

A brief delay in clamping the umbilical cord results in a placental transfusion that supplies the infant with a major source of iron during the first few months of life. Cord circulation continues for several minutes after birth and placental transfusion results in approximately 30% more blood volume. Gravity influences the amount of placental transfusion that an infant receives. Placing the infant skin-to-skin requires a longer delay of cord clamping (DCC) than current recommendations. Uterotonics are not contraindicated with DCC...

Giant choriangiomas are rare placental tumours, associated with a high prevalence of pregnancy complications and a poor perinatal outcome. Neonatal consequences include severe microangiopathic haemolytic anaemia, thrombocytopaenia and hydrops. The associated high perinatal death rate (30-40%) has led to a number of prenatal therapeutic interventions with limited success in most cases. The authors present a case of non-immune fetal hydrops caused by a giant chorioangioma, diagnosed at 27 weeks of gestational age...

The optimal timing for cord clamping, early versus delayed, in the third stage of labour is a controversial subject. Issues surrounding the timing of cord clamping include gestational age and maternal and neonatal considerations. Delayed cord clamping (DCC) has been shown to increase placental transfusion, leading to an increase in neonatal blood volume at birth of approximately 30%. In the term infant, although this may result in an increase in iron stores, thereby decreasing the risk of anemia, it may adversely increase the risk of jaundice and the need for phototherapy...

Large placental chorioangiomas (LPCs) are rare complications of pregnancy and these tumors are associated with increased risk of pregnancy complications. We presented a LPC case at 25th week of gestation, complicated by polyhydramnios and preterm labor in which intratumoral alcohol injection was performed succesfully. Cordocentesis, fetal intrauterine transfusion, and amnioreduction were performed at the same session, as a combined approach. The safety of the procedure was shown by the lack of alcohol in the fetal cord blood sample...

OBJECTIVE: To determine clinical characteristics, demographics and short-term outcomes of neonates diagnosed with fetomaternal haemorrhage (FMH). DESIGN: The authors analysed the Nationwide Inpatient Sample, 1993 to 2008. Singleton births diagnosed with FMH were identified by International Classification of Diseases (ICD-9) code 762.3. Descriptive, univariate and multivariable regression analyses were performed to determine the national annual incidence of FMH over time as well as demographics and clinical characteristics of neonates with FMH...

Noninvasive blood flow measurements based on Doppler ultrasound studies are the main clinical tool for studying the cardiovascular status of fetuses at risk for circulatory compromise. Usually, qualitative analysis of peripheral arteries and in particular clinical situations such as severe growth restriction or volume overload also of venous vessels close to the heart or of flow patterns in the heart is being used to gauge the level of compensation in a fetus. However, quantitative assessment of the driving force of the fetal circulation, the cardiac output remains an elusive goal in fetal medicine...

BACKGROUND: Small hematomas on the placental surface, termed subamniotic hemorrhage, are a common finding either at the routine 18- to 20-week anatomy ultrasound or at subsequent assessments of fetal growth and well-being. Hemorrhage beneath or at the edge of the placenta, or behind an isolated area of the fetal membranes, is of greater concern. THE CASES: We describe the ultrasound findings and clinical outcomes in two women with a diagnosis of massive intrauterine hematoma arising from the fetal membranes...