Ramona MOHORA, Decebal HUDITA and Silvia-Maria STOICESCU

ABSTRACT

Introduction: Cord blood is the “life” of the fetus until birth. After delivery, the newborn is “single” and forced to adapt to live using the latest resources provided by the mother. Those who believe that a newborn is just a miniature independent adult are just trusting one of the illusions of secular medicine.
Cord blood contains precious cells, stem, red and white blood cells. T cells as a part of white blood cells prevent infections and other illnesses. Cochrane Database 2013 published a study reporting the role of delayed umbilical cord clamping for the benefit of infants. Harvesting of stem cells increases early clamping. So, is prevention better than treatment, speaking about possible pathologies that can occur throughout life?

Material and methods: A prospective study of newborns in “Alessandrescu-Rusescu” National Institute for Mother and Child Health, Bucharest, Romania, was monitored by their adaptation to extrauterine life, depending on time and technique of clamping. The impact of harvesting stem cells after birth was explored.

Results: Of all babies, 8.23% were premature. Maternal pathology (arterial hypertension, diabetes mellitus, infections, thrombophilia) was present in 31.76% of cases. Of the 85 newborns with harvested stem cells, 47% needed assistance in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). Birth asphyxia (SA≤7) was present in 10.58% of cases.
Conclusion: Two protocols with strong recommendations about umbilical cord clamping and harvesting stem cells, respectively, are necessary.
Keywords: delayed clamping, early clamping, stem cells, term newborn, preterm infant, extrauterine life transition.

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