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Umbilical cord milking versus delayed cord clamping in term infants: a systematic review and meta-analysis

Journal of Perinatology volume 41, pages 1549–1557 (2021)Cite this article

Subjects

Abstract

Objective

Delayed cord clamping (DCC) is recommended for healthy term infants. However, the effectiveness of umbilical cord milking (UCM) in term infants remains unknown. The study aimed to compare the effects of UCM versus DCC on term infants.

Study design

A systematic review and meta-analysis were conducted which included individual and clustered RCTs comparing UCM with DCC for infants born at ≥37 weeks of gestation.

Results

Three trials (650 term infants) were included. Compared with DCC, UCM was associated with higher hemoglobin levels at 6 weeks after birth [infants, 621; mean difference, 0.17; 95% confidence interval, 0.05–0.29] and had no statistical differences in hemoglobin levels at birth, serum bilirubin levels at 48 h after birth, or hematocrit levels at 48 h after birth.

Conclusion

This study suggested that UCM might be as beneficial as DCC in term infants, however, further RCTs are required to accurately assess the outcomes.

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Fig. 1
Fig. 2: Comparison of umbilical cord milking and delayed cord clamping.

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Funding

This work was supported by a grant from the Neonatal Research Network (NRN) Japan (Grant Number NRN201801) (FN).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Nihon University School of Medicine, Itabashi, Tokyo, 173-8610, Japan

    Kazumasa Fuwa & Nobuhiko Nagano

  2. Department of Neonatal Medicine, Osaka Women’s and Children’s Hospital, Izumi, Osaka, 594-1101, Japan

    Natsuko Tabata

  3. Division of Neonatology, Nagano Children’s Hospital, Azumino, Nagano, 399-8288, Japan

    Ryo Ogawa

  4. Global Health Nursing, Graduate School of Nursing Science, St. Luke’s International University, Chuo, Tokyo, 104-0044, Japan

    Noyuri Yamaji & Erika Ota

  5. Department of Pediatrics, Saitama Medical Center, Saitama Medical University, Kawagoe, Saitama, 350-8550, Japan

    Fumihiko Namba

Authors
  1. Kazumasa Fuwa
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  2. Natsuko Tabata
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  3. Ryo Ogawa
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  4. Nobuhiko Nagano
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  5. Noyuri Yamaji
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  6. Erika Ota
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  7. Fumihiko Namba
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Correspondence to Kazumasa Fuwa.

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Fuwa, K., Tabata, N., Ogawa, R. et al. Umbilical cord milking versus delayed cord clamping in term infants: a systematic review and meta-analysis. J Perinatol 41, 1549–1557 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41372-020-00825-6

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