Delayed Cord Clamping

kmullins26 · January 2016

I came across an article the other day about this. I had never heard of delayed cord clamping before so I wondered what people's opinions are on it?

PSUBecky23 · January 2016

We did it with my first and we'll do it with this one, as well.

Blairbear28 · January 2016

I think it is a very positive thing. I hope to delay!

RedMar · January 2016

I hope to do it this time around. Last labor was kind of a sh*tshow and I was not able to make the decision in time. I will be telling DH so he knows as well.

kmd78 · January 2016

Did it with our first and will do it again this time

0SeaMonkey0 · January 2016

It's standard practice for our midwives (and most midwives I believe) so we didn't even have to ask for it, but here's a way to get hubby to fight for it:

TMI warning...

DH was really nervous about cutting the cord with our first born. He actually wasn't planning to do it because his best friend had told him horror stories about cutting the cord and getting splattered with blood. When the time came he just kind of got caught up in the moment and decided to cut the cord after all. It was no big deal! When you delay clamping, not only is it better for baby, but the blood is no longer moving through the cord so it doesn't get pressurized behind the clamp. No horror movie scene when the cord is cut!!

camichael84 · January 2016

With DD, I initially wanted to donate the cord blood, but according to my OB, my state had a surplus of cord blood and I would have had to find a private organization to donate to. I decided at that point to do a delayed cord clamp.

However, DD was born on a Sunday and therefore, delivered by the on call doctor who did not delay the clamp despite my wishes. She also told me I'd need a c-section before I even started pushing (I ended up delivering vaginally) and didn't numb me before stitching my tear. So to say I wasn't too impressed by her would be an understatement.

crispy11 · January 2016

I would only want it done if baby is born before 37 weeks. I don't need any extra reason to have a jaundiced baby.

vrj0522 · January 2016

We did it with both kids and are doing it again. And neither kid had jaundice.

kmullins26 · January 2016

Did anyone who has done it end up with a jaundiced baby?

erinmarie86 · January 2016

I didn't do it and my baby had jaundice...he was also born 36w 5d...but jaundice is pretty common even in full term babies. It's not too terrible. My son just needed to be under some light for a day.

I am thinking of doing it for this one, but i don't feel strongly one way or the other.

kaelymarion8 · January 2016

Hi! We did it with our baby and she still had slight jaundice, but we will continue to do delayed clamping as baby receives rich nutrients from the remaining blood in cord.

kaelymarion8 · January 2016

It worked out very well actually since we also did skin to skin with babe right after she was born

OBMommy · January 2016

I have always thought it was a nice idea. However, as I'm an OB nurse, I recently had a conversation with one of our OB doctors about it and so decided to do some research. According to what I found, DCC is a great way to prevent anemia in newborns (which is rare) BUT it greatly increases the risk of jaundice in newborns (which is very common).

I know there are other potential benefits, just thought I'd share what I have personally found to be true.

JennM205 · January 2016

@camichael84 Can you not delay cord clamping if wanting to donate cord blood? We donated DDs cord blood and I was hoping to do the same this time as well. I'm surprised that there was a surplus of donated cord blood in your state. I've always heard more along the lines of there being shortages and SO MANY people out there who would benefit from donated cord blood, which is why I was so dead-set on donating. (Like to the point that DH was on the phone with the donation agency trying to tie up loose ends of my donation approval in the midst of heavy labor, haha.)

camichael84 · January 2016

@JennM205 I thought it was weird when my OB told me there was a surplus, too. I went along with what she told me, though, because I couldn't donate through the hospital without her. She did suggest private donation if I wanted, but I was fairly far along when we discussed it, and didn't think I had enough time to set it up. My OB would have allowed a delayed cord clamp either way, she just wasn't the one who delivered DD.

This has made me realize that I should ask her about it sooner this time so I can look into private donation this time, if need be.

JennM205 · January 2016

@camichael84 Thanks for the info. If you're interested in donating, definitely set it up early. My only option was through a private company and it took forever to get approval (hence the in-the-midst-of-labor phone calls). And this was after I started the process as early as they would allow. (I can't remember the exact rules but I wasn't allowed to submit paperwork until well into second tri.)

ETA: THEIR process took forever. The amount of time I spent on it was fairly reasonable. I got the impression that they were severely understaffed when it came to reviewing paperwork and finalizing approvals.

Shiva14 · January 2016

I didn't know this could promote jaundice, that makes me feel slightly better our doctor refused to do it last time. Not that we ended up having a choice, as DS wasn't breathing at first. He also had jaundice and needed to be on lights for a full week.

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