When should the cord be clamped?

An important requirement for cord blood collection is the timing of the clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord. Generally a baby’s cord is clamped within one minute of birth. This time frame ensures the cord blood remains in the umbilical cord and placenta for collection. Research has shown that the volume of cord blood collected at birth is directly related to the success of the cord blood transplant - the greater the cord blood volume, the better the clinical outcome of the treatment.

Delayed cord clamping and cord blood banking can both be achieved through consultation with your health care professional and Cell Care. Health care providers can manage both reasonable delayed cord clamping and cord blood collections. If delayed cord clamping is part of your birth plan, we recommend a delay of up to 60 seconds to ensure we still achieve our average collection volume – remembering that the amount of cord blood collected relates closely to the cell dose that may be obtained from any given collection. In the first minute after birth, up to 80% of blood volume is transferred from the placenta to the baby. This means that 1 minute of delayed cord clamping allows for your baby to receive the majority of cord blood at birth and still achieve sufficient cord blood for long term banking.