Correlation between Late Cord Clamping and Phototherapy and Other Neonatal Unfavorable Outcomes: A Randomized Clinical Trial

Background: Recently, late umbilical cord clamping is generally recommended, which decreases neonatal anemia;however, it may also increase neonatal jaundice and some other poor outcomes. Objectives: We here attempted to determine whether late clamping actually increases the incidence of phototherapy for jaundice and other poor outcomes of the term “low-risk newborns”. Methods: With the approval of the Brazilian Registry of Clinical Trials (REBEC), a total of 357 low-risk newborns (singleton, uncomplicated pregnancy/delivery, in a Brazilian public institution) were randomized into two groups: group I (n = 114): cord clamping 1 minute (early clamping) or group II (n = 243): cord clamping between 1 - 3 minutes (late clamping). Statistics were used appropriately (i.e., measures of central tendency, dispersion for continuous variables, Shapiro-Wilk, Mann-Whitney test, or Chi-square test). Results: Phototherapy was performed in 5.3% in both groups. Also, there were no statistical differences in the occurrence of secondary outcomes, such as sepsis, neonatal ICU admission, and transient tachypnea of the newborns: i.e., 0.9%, 15.8%, and 3.5%, respectively for group I versus 1.2%, 15.6%, and 5.8%, respectively for group II. Conclusion: Late umbilical cord clamping does not increase the need for phototherapy in low-risk neonates. This result corroborates the current recommendation of late cord clamping, whenever appropriate.

Hereditary Angioedema in Pregnancy and Management without Recombinant Human C1-INH

A pregnant woman diagnosed with type 1 angioedema seeks care at a public hospital for planning the delivery. This report presents ways to prevent and manage an acute HAE crisis during childbirth and early postpartum without the availability of first-line medications, such as plasma-derived human C1-INH concentrate.

Maternal Effects of Immediate versus Delayed Umbilical Cord Clamping: A Randomized Clinical Trial

OBJECTIVE: To compare maternal preoperative and postoperative hemoglobin variation after cord clamping. METHODS: Randomized clinical trial performed in Porto Alegre, RS from January to December 2012. It was included 356 women with habitual risk gestations. In the immediate cord clamping group, the umbilical cord section was realized between 0 and 60 s (group 1) while in the delayed cord clamping group it was realized >60 s (group 2). RESULTS: The mean (±standard deviation [SD]) preoperative hemoglobin was 12.13 ± 1.06 in the group 1 and 12.13 ± 1.11 in the group 2. The mean (±SD) postoperative day 2 hemoglobin level was 10.19 ± 1.46 in the group 1 and 10.24 ± 1.42 in the group 2. CONCLUSIONS: Delayed umbilical cord clamping resulted in a similar maternal hemoglobin level reduction at postoperative day 2.

Correlation between Endocervical Length in the First Trimester and Spontaneous Preterm Delivery

Introduction: Prematurity is a public health problem in Brazil, with 12% of deliveries occurring before 37 weeks of gestation. The measurement of the cervix in the second trimester is already established as a method of screening for prematurity and some studies point out advantages to start this screening in the first trimester. Objective: To define the correlation between the length of the endocervix by transvaginal ultrasound in the first trimester (11 to 14 weeks) with spontaneous early deliveries. Method: A prospective and observational study realized in a suplementar and private ultrasound clinic and hospital of Porto Alegre, Brazil between 2019-2020. Ultrasound screening of cervix was performed in singleton pregnancies in first and second trimester of pregnancy and correlated with age of delivery. Results: 142 pregnant women were studied, 80% were in the first pregnancy. The average age was 33.8 years. The rate of prematurity was 18% before 37 weeks and 4% before 34 weeks. The average of cervix measured in the first and second trimesters in deliveries before 34 weeks was 32.7 mm and 29.3 mm, respectively. In term deliveries the median cervical length was 38.8 mm and 37.8 mm, respectively. When analyzing the measurements of the cervix in the second trimester, the cervix was smaller (p = 0.008) among deliveries below 34 weeks (29 mm) than deliveries after 37 weeks. No statistically related differences were found between preterm birth and first trimester cervix measurements. Conclusions: In this study, we did not observe a statistically significant relationship between first trimester cervix measurement and prematurity. More studies are needed to evaluate this finding. However, the measurement of the cervix in the second trimester is different from that found in the literature. This suggests a possible new cut-off point that increases the sensitivity of transvaginal ultrasound as a method of preventing prematurity.