The Effect of Placental Cord Drainage on the Length of the Third Stage of Labor in Primiparous Women

Postpartum hemorrhage is one of the important causes of maternal mortality and morbidity in developing countries. Management of the third stage of labor including the use of uncomplicated methods could be effective in reduction of postpartum hemorrhage and maternal mortality and morbidity. This study was done aimed to assess the effect of placental cord drainage on the length of the third stage of labor. This clinical trial was conducted on 90 primiparous women who had vaginal delivery in Razi hospital of Ahvaz، Iran in 2012. In first group placental cord drainage was performed immediately after delivery and women in second group received no intervention. In all cases the placenta was delivered by Brandt Andrew maneuver. Immediately after that، the length of the third stage of labor، mechanism of placental delivery، number of placental retention and need for manual removal of placenta were recorded. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 16 and Kolmogorov–Smirnov، independent t-test and chi-square. P value less than 0. 05 was considered significant. The two groups were similar in maternal and neonatal characteristics. Mean length of the third stage of labor in case group (3. 51±0. 93 minutes) was significantly shorter than control group (6. 05±0. 96 minutes) (p<0. 0001). There was no placental retention or need for manual removal of placenta in both groups. Placental cord drainage as a simple and non invasive method can reduce the length of the third stage of labor.