The dressing of the umbilical cord

The umbilical cord medication that frightens future parents so much turns out to be an all in all simple procedure that requires only a few small tricks and explanations.

When you become a parent for the first time, the emotions that come home from the hospital are indescribable. However, these feelings of joy are accompanied by many doubts and worries, which fortunately are resolved … with a little practice.

The fear of not having enough milk, the doubts about how to understand if the baby is hungry, the fear of not knowing how to change the diaper on your own … or how to bathe or medicate the umbilical cord, all pass within a few hours or a few days. After the first weeks of “training”  the new mother and the new father will become real experts in changing, bathing and feeding!

The first few days can undoubtedly seem and be more complicated, but don’t worry!

Even the umbilical cord medication that is so frightening, in the end proves to be a simple procedure that requires only a few small precautions and explanations.

To clarify any doubts, we made use of the scientific advice of the specialists of the Birth Center of Humanitas San Pio X.

What happens to the umbilical cord immediately after birth?

The umbilical cord during pregnancy allows the baby to receive from the mother through the placenta, oxygen, antibodies and all the nutrients it needs for its growth and development.

Inside the umbilical cord are three blood vessels, two arteries and one vein. The vein carries oxygen and nutrients to the baby, and the smaller arteries carry wastes and oxygen-deprived blood from the fetus to the mother.

Once born, the umbilical cord loses this function and we proceed with the cut that is often entrusted to the fathers.

In the Birth Point of Humanitas San Pio X, we proceed, if possible, with a delayed clamping of the umbilical cord and subsequently with the resection of the cord itself, 2-3 minutes after birth (as also recommended by the World Health Organization) even in the event of cesarean delivery (when possible). In this way the residual blood found in the cord can reach the newborn and thus guarantee him a further supply of red blood cells and substances useful for adaptation to extrauterine life.

Once the clamping and resection have been carried out, the newborn remains a small stump in correspondence with what will be his navel.

Furthermore, at the Birth Point of the hospital, gynecologists, midwives and neonatologists are active in a multidisciplinary study to define the timing and methods of carrying out the clamping and milking (squeezing) of the umbilical cord. In fact, the research conducted in this area highlights significant benefits for the health of the newborn deriving from a delayed cut of the cord and therefore from a greater transfusion of blood cells from the placental side.

How is the umbilical cord medication done?

The abutment should always be kept clean and dry to facilitate the drying process.

For this reason it is important to protect it with a dry, sterile gauze which must be changed at each diaper change, i.e. 7-8 times a day.

When does the umbilical stump fall out leaving the navel visible?

The fall occurs spontaneously around the 8th day of life.

Once the stump comes off, it is necessary to clean the residue using a sterile gauze with hydrogen peroxide, subsequently drying with a dry gauze.