Cord Blood banking

abba916

anyone do it? recommendations as to a good company?

we're discussing it...

 

fenwaygirl5

You just read my mind b/c I was going to post this question last night, but I said to myself I will just wait till tomorrow.  I would really love info on this besides the brochure I got. 

Telyco

First - I would contact your hospital...they may only work with one company - or they may not have the capabilities to do this at all. So that may influence your decision.

And while we thought about this...a lot of articles I have read about this basically said that the technology just really isn't there for this to be a worthwhile investment. Even last year there wasn't one child whose life was saved from this - but now I am seeing commercials with stories so that may have changed.

I guess it boiled down to us not being able to justify the cost with what scientific evidence we read.

There's some real nasty stuff out there talking about these companies basically preying on scared parents and ripping them off....but I don't believe that. I just think the idea is a lot better than reality.

MarcyIam

I haven't done any research, but the 2 companies mentioned at my birthing class this past weekend were:

Viacord:  www.viacord.com

Cord Blood Registry:  www.cordblood.com

They mentioned that one of them usually has a coupon, so when you call one, play them against each other.  Mention the $500 coupon, even if you don't have it, and they will most likely give it to you - even if it's the other company.

Also - they said to make sure you put it in your hospital bag when you get it so you don't forget it because you won't have time to go home before it can no longer be used, and then you've wasted your money. 

Also - they mentioned something about having to store it a specific way as well, but I'm sure that information will come with your kit if you decide to pursue this option.

day194

We didn't look into banking it, for many of the reasons listed above.  I did look a little into donating, but didn't find anywhere in the area that we could do that through. Although, I'll admit I didn't look that hard.

Telyco

We didn't look that hard into donating either. Our hospital didn't do it - so it would have taken a lot to try and figure it out. I still feel bad about it. But we ended up asking our OB to wait to cut the cord so the baby could get as much of that blood as possible.

I just copied this exerpt from somewhere...just in case someone doesn't decide to bank. They really want to clamp and cut right away - but you run the show! : )

London, June 17 (ANI): A new study has found that waiting just two minutes to cut the umbilical cord after birth, can give babies a ?significant? health boost as it reduces the risk of blood disorders.

The study was conducted by scientists at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada, and involved more than 1,900 newborns.

Lead author Eileen Hutton, assistant dean of midwifery at the university, said that the results showed that as little as a 2-minute delay could not only halve the risk of anaemia by half, but also increase low iron levels in the blood by a third.

?The results of our study clearly show this reduces the incidence of anemia and improves iron stores in newborns. And, more importantly, these benefits extend beyond the early neonatal period,? the Daily Mail quoted her, as saying.

Anemia is a shortage of oxygen-carrying haemoglobin in the blood that causes paleness, tiredness, shortness of breath and can affect brain development.

Delayed clamping has previously been linked to an increased risk of jaundice, which in serious cases can harm the baby and affect the brain.

As a part of the study, scientists analyzed 15 previous trials on cord clamping from 11 countries.

About half of babies had immediate cord clamping, while the rest had their cords clamped between two and three minutes after birth.

Based on the findings the researches concluded that late clamping is good for the baby, and does not increase the newborn's blood volume by up to 30 per cent, as previously thought.

?Late clamping of the umbilical cord is an inexpensive way of enhancing blood status, preventing anemia over the first three months of life and enriching iron stores for as long as six months,? the researchers state.

?Although this is of particular importance for developing countries in which anemia during infancy and childbirth is highly prevalent, it is likely to have an important impact on all newborns,? they added.

The study is published in the Journal of the American Medical Association. (ANI)

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