Journal of Neonatal-Perinatal Medicine, vol.17, no.4, pp.535-542, 2024 (Scopus)
BACKGROUND: Delayed cord clamping is the standard of care for both term and preterm infants worldwide. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of 60-second or 180-second delayed cord clamping during labor on cerebral oxygenation and cardiac function. METHODS: Healthy newborns were divided into two groups: a 60-second delay in cord clamping (60-s DCC) and a 180-second delay in cord clamping (180-s DCC) at birth. Pulse oximetry and cerebral near-infrared spectroscopy (cNIRS) probes were placed during postnatal care. A total of 84 healthy newborns were included in this study. Preductal oxygen saturation (SpO2), heart rate, and cNIRS values were recorded at 5 and 10minutes after delivery. The cardiac function of the infants was assessed by echocardiography at 3-7 days postnatally. RESULTS: There was no significant difference between the groups in SpO2 and cNIRS values at 5 and 10min. While there was no significant difference in the number of neonates with targeted SpO2 at the 5th and 10thmin and targeted cNIRS values at the 10thmin, there was a significant difference in the number of neonates with target cNIRS values at the 5th min between groups (p<0.001). Echocardiographic findings showed that pulmonary flow velocity was increased in the 180-s DCC group; the difference was statistically significant (p=0.04). CONCLUSION: Our results showed that the number of infants with normal cNIRS values regarding cerebral oxygenation was higher in the 180-s DCC group. The pulmonary flow velocity was significantly increased in the 180-s DCC group in terms of echocardiographic findings.