The time and duration of umbilical cord clamping in babies born in the public hospitals of Khorasan Razavi during 2020 to 2022

The time of umbilical cord clamping is an important strategy for better prognosis of preterm and full-term infants, and all health care providers should be informed about the components and importance of this approach. The present study was performed with aim to investigate the time and duration of umbilical cord clamping in the delivery or operating room of Khorasan Razavi Hospitals.

This descriptive study was conducted on 1237 babies born in the delivery or operating room of Khorasan Razavi public Hospitals between 2020 and 2022 with available sampling. In each hospital, a researcher assistant midwife who was not involved in the delivery process recorded the time of umbilical cord clamping after birth, and in the next step, she recorded the possible cause of early umbilical cord clamping by asking the obstetrician. Data were analyzed by SPSS software (version 26) and descriptive statistics tests. P<0.05 was considered statistically significant.

In this study, 165 neonates (13.4%) were premature and 1072 neonates (86.6%) were born full term. In addition, 915 neonates (73.96%) were born naturally and other 322 neonates (26.04%) by cesarean section. The mean duration of the umbilical cord clamping of the newborns was 35.25 ± 27.29 second, which was reported as 21.29 ± 14.95 second in cesarean section and 40.22 ± 28.92 second in natural delivery. In 719 neonates (58.1%), the umbilical cord is closed before 30 seconds and in 322 neonates (26%) before 15 seconds. Among the causes of early umbilical cord clamping, hasting by obstetrician (30%), caesarean section (3.7%), doctor's routine (2.1%) and mother's non-cooperation (1.5%) were the most common causes.

Umbilical cord clamping is done quickly or very quickly in the delivery room of Khorasan Razavi public hospitals, and in caesarean section, this urgency is very noticeable, and the most common cause of hasting is obstetrician. Therefore, correcting the thinking of the obstetrician in order to improve the time of umbilical cord clamping seems necessary. Delaying umbilical cord clamping plays an important role in the transition from fetal to newborn blood circulation and improves the health of newborns.