Umbilical clamping should be deferred to protect blood flow to newborns, recommends expert review

Clamping of the umbilical cord should be deferred rather than carried out immediately after the birth of healthy babies born at full term, recommends an updated review.1 This conclusion was based on evidence that deferral protected blood flow to the baby and improved iron stores in infancy.

The updated scientific impact paper from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists reviewed the latest evidence on the timing of cord clamping. It warned that immediate cord clamping can affect blood flow to the newborn baby and the transition from fetal to neonatal circulation.

Immediate clamping, defined …