Benefits of cord blood collection in the prevention of post-partum hemorrhage: a cohort study

Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the benefit of umbilical cord drainage through cord blood collection (CBC) for the prevention of post-partum hemorrhage (PPH).

Methods: This is a retrospective cohort study based on data collected prospectively including all vaginal delivery of singletons pregnancies after 37 weeks of gestation between July 2011 and May 2013 at the Strasbourg Teaching Hospital. We performed a univariate comparison of PPH risk factors with χ² tests and then we built multivariate logistic regressions to predict PPH, severe PPH (>1000?cc), retained placenta over 30?min and manual removal of the placenta.

Results: A total of 7810 vaginal deliveries were analyzed, among which 1957 benefited from CBC (25%). In the CBC group, 71 PPH (3.6%) were observed versus 260 (4.4%) in the control group (p?=?0.12). In multivariate analysis, after adjustment on PPH risk factors, CBC revealed to be a protective factor of PPH: OR?=?0.69 (95% CI 0.50–0.97; p?=?0.03). CBC is neither a significant predictive factor of severe PPH, time to placental delivery nor rate of manual removal of the placenta.

Conclusions: In our study, CBC and thus umbilical cord drainage was a protective factor against PPH but it did reduce neither retained placenta nor the need for artificial placental delivery.