How Performed:

Immediately after the birth of your baby, the umbilical cord is clamped and cut. If cord blood is to be drawn, another clamp is placed 8 to 10 inches away from the first, then the isolated section is cut and a blood sample is collected into a specimen tube.

How To Prepare: No preparation for the test is necessary on your part.

How It Feels: Nothing outside the normal birthing process will be felt.

Risks: There are no risks above and beyond those normally experienced by the mother and child at the time of birth.

Why Performed: The test is performed to assess:

• blood gases
• blood type and Rh
• respiratory status
• CBC
• Hgb
• HCT
• bilirubin
• glucose
• blood culture (if an infection is suspected)

Normal Values: Normal values indicate that all items evaluated are within normal range.

Abnormal Results:

Fetal acidemia is defined by a pH less than 7.2, although some investigators feel that 7.10 is a more reasonable definition. Further evaluation of pH and base deficit values will determine whether the acidemia is a result of little blood flow or oxygen exchange between the mother and placenta, or from cord compression.

A blood culture that is positive for bacteria indicates septicemia.

Elevated levels of glucose indicate maternal diabetes, and your health care provider know that your child should be watched for rebound hypoglycemia.

Elevate bilirubin could indicate:

• maternal jaundice
• maternal ingestion of sulfa drugs during pregnancy
• Rh incompatibility
• Dubin-Johnson syndrome
• congenital toxoplasmosis
• congenital rubella
• congenital hepatitis
• congenital CMV

Cost:

Special Considerations:

Most hospitals routinely collect a cord blood, since it is relatively convenient to do so and the only time it is possible, if your child has a normal and uneventful childbirth your health care provider may choose to only run selected tests on the sample.