Cord clamping

Abstract

"Immediate clamping of the umbilical cord can reduce the red blood cells an infant receives at birth by more than 50%, resulting in potential short-term and long-term neonatal problems." So concluded Judith Mercer, CNM and colleagues in a study reported in the fall of 2001 in the Journal of Midwifery and Women's Health (Mercer, 2001). "Early clamping of the umbilical cord at birth, a practice developed without adequate evidence, causes neonatal blood volume to vary 25% to 40%. Such a massive change occurs at no other time in one's life without serious consequences, even death. Early cord clamping may impede a successful transition and contribute to hypovolemic and hypoxic damage in vulnerable newborns" (Mercer, 2002).