Physiological-based cord clamping stabilised cardiorespiratory parameters in very low birth weight infants.

Abstract

We investigated the influence of physiological-based cord clamping (PBCC) on cardiorespiratory stability in very low birth weight (VLBW) infants during the first 72 h of life. This retrospective study comprised VLBW infants born at <32 + 0 weeks of gestation and admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit of the Medical University of Graz, Austria, from December 2014 to April 2021. VLBW infants delivered with PBCC were matched by gestational age and birth weight to delayed cord clamping controls. The PBCC group was stabilised after birth with an intact cord. Routine monitoring parameters were compared between the groups. We included 54 VLBW infants. The mean gestational ages of the PBCC group and controls were 27.4 ± 1.9 versus 27.4 ± 1.8 weeks (p = 0.87), and the mean birth weights were 912 ± 288 versus 915 ± 285 g (p = 0.96), respectively. The mean cord clamping time was 191 ± 78 s in the PBCC group. Heart rate was lower in the PBCC group during the first 3 days after birth, reaching significance by 10 h. Other monitoring parameters did not reveal any differences between the two groups. PBCC stabilised cardiorespiratory parameters in VLBW infants. The lower heart rate in the PBCC group suggested higher blood volume following intact cord resuscitation.