Umbilical cord around the neck

For women in the late stages of pregnancy, the most important step is childbirth. Because the pregnancy has lasted for ten months, whether the delivery is smooth will affect the health of the fetus and the pregnant woman. In the late stages of pregnancy, pregnant women will often undergo prenatal checkups and need to keep track of the fetus's condition at all times. There are two ways of delivery: natural delivery and caesarean section. If there are no unexpected circumstances, most pregnant women give birth naturally. But can I have a cesarean section if the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck?

Can I have a normal birth if the umbilical cord is wrapped around my neck?

It is very common for the umbilical cord to be wrapped around the neck of a fetus in the mother's womb, and the incidence rate during delivery is about 1/4. However, many expectant mothers are worried that if the baby's umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck, it may be dangerous during normal delivery, resulting in the need for a caesarean section. Can a natural birth be performed if the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck? In fact, normally speaking, the umbilical cord wrapped around the neck does not necessarily mean that a caesarean section is required. If during delivery, the umbilical cord is not tightly wrapped around the neck, the number of circles is not too large, and the umbilical cord is long enough, then a normal delivery can be achieved. If the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck many times and is very tight, then the umbilical cord will be too short, which may easily cause the fetal head to not descend or the fetal heart rate to be obviously abnormal. In this case, a caesarean section should be considered.

The umbilical cord itself is elastic and has compensatory stretching. If it is wrapped too tightly or multiple times, it may affect the blood supply to the fetus, and there is a risk of fetal heart rate changes, perinatal hypoxia, suffocation, and even death. In fact, the main factor that determines whether the umbilical cord around the neck will affect delivery is not the number of times the cord is wrapped around the neck, but the length of the umbilical cord left after removing the parts around the neck. In some cases, although the umbilical cord only wraps around the neck once, its relatively short length may still cause serious consequences and require a caesarean section. Therefore, whether a normal birth is possible if the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck depends on the situation of the umbilical cord wrapped around the neck. Since umbilical cord around the neck is very common, pregnant women do not need to worry too much. They can just ask their doctor for details about the situation in advance and then choose an appropriate treatment plan. Strengthening fetal monitoring before and during delivery and choosing the correct method of delivery can effectively reduce the morbidity and mortality of neonates with umbilical cord around the neck.

What is umbilical cord around the neck

What exactly is umbilical cord around the neck? One end of the umbilical cord is connected to the navel chakra on the baby's abdominal wall, and the other end is attached to the placenta that supplies nutrition. During the ten months of pregnancy, the baby exchanges blood with the mother through the umbilical cord blood circulation, obtaining oxygen and various nutrients needed from the mother, while also excreting waste from the fetus' body. Therefore, whether the umbilical cord develops well and whether there are any abnormalities plays an important role in the baby's health. This is often because the umbilical cord itself is relatively long, and the baby is relatively active and often turns over, which may cause the umbilical cord to wrap around the neck. When doing an ultrasound during a prenatal checkup, the ultrasound doctor will often write a "△" on the report, followed by 0 or different numbers. In fact, this represents whether the baby currently has the umbilical cord wrapped around the neck. 0 means there is no umbilical cord wrapped around the neck, and other different numbers refer to the number of circles of the umbilical cord around the neck.

Many expectant mothers become very nervous when they learn during prenatal checkups that their fetus' umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck. In fact, umbilical cord around the neck is very common. In China, the incidence of umbilical cord around the neck in babies is about 20% to 25%, among which the incidence of umbilical cord around the neck for one week is 89%, and the incidence of umbilical cord around the neck for two weeks is 11%. It is relatively rare for the umbilical cord to wrap around the neck for more than 3 weeks or around the fetal trunk or limbs. It can be seen that the umbilical cord around the neck is relatively more common. Umbilical cord around the neck is usually caused by the umbilical cord being too long, the fetus being too small, too much amniotic fluid, and too frequent fetal movements. I believe this is easy for everyone to understand. Umbilical cord around the neck may not necessarily lead to a caesarean section for pregnant women. Whether it will affect the mode of delivery depends on the specific situation of the baby's umbilical cord around the neck. ...

What to do if the umbilical cord is around the neck

B-ultrasound examination is the only way to diagnose umbilical cord around the neck. Electronic fetal heart monitoring can also be used to help diagnose whether the umbilical cord entanglement problem is serious. So, what should you do if the umbilical cord is entangled for a week? As an expectant mother, frequently listening to the fetal heart rate or performing fetal heart monitoring during labor can help you understand in time whether the fetus is in a dangerous condition and decide how to deal with it.

1. When the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck, the pregnant mother should learn to count the fetal movements herself. If the fetal movements are too many or too few, she should go to the hospital for examination in time.

2. If there is too much or too little amniotic fluid, or the fetus is in an abnormal position, the pregnant woman must do a good prenatal check-up and decide in advance how to deal with it.

3. Use indirect methods such as fetal heart monitoring and ultrasound examination to determine the condition of the umbilical cord around the neck and obtain timely information.

4. Pregnant women should reduce vibration and sleep on their left side.

5. You can use a home fetal heart monitor (Doppler fetal heart monitor) to check the fetal condition twice a day at home, and seek medical attention in time if any problems are found.

6. When the umbilical cord is found around the neck, a caesarean section is not necessarily required. Only when the fetal head does not descend or the fetal heart rate has obvious abnormalities, surgery should be considered.

Does the umbilical cord around the neck have any effect on the fetus?

The umbilical cord around the neck can occur at any time during pregnancy, and sometimes it may change during the third trimester. In rare cases, the umbilical cord around the neck will untie on its own. What expectant mothers are most concerned about is whether the umbilical cord wrapped around the neck will have any impact on the fetus? In fact, the impact of the umbilical cord wrapped around the neck on the fetus is related to the number of weeks and tightness of the wrapping, the length of the umbilical cord, and the amount of amniotic fluid. It is also related to whether labor is imminent. Generally speaking, a fetus with the umbilical cord wrapped around its neck will not develop clinical symptoms because the degree of entanglement and compression is relatively mild. This type of entanglement does not pose much danger to the mother and child, and natural delivery can still be chosen. As long as the umbilical cord is not tightened, it usually does not endanger the health of the fetus.

However, if the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck too many times, or even if the number of wraps is not large, but the umbilical cord is too short relative to the neck and is wrapped too tightly, it will affect the umbilical cord blood flow, and first of all, it will affect the metabolism of oxygen and carbon dioxide in the fetus. In this case, Ken will cause the fetal heart rate to slow down. In severe cases, fetal hypoxia or even fetal death may occur, which is more passive and difficult to deal with. It can be seen from this that even if the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck, if it is wrapped too tightly, it may still cause certain effects on the fetus. Therefore, if the baby's umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck, the mother must check frequently to monitor and determine the situation, especially in the late pregnancy.

How to prevent the umbilical cord from wrapping around the neck

If you, as a pregnant mother, have not yet discovered that your baby's umbilical cord is wrapped around his neck, it does not mean that this situation will not occur in the late pregnancy. Therefore, it is very necessary for every expectant mother to learn how to avoid the umbilical cord around the neck. Although there is no guarantee that the baby's umbilical cord can be completely prevented from getting around the neck, expectant mothers can reduce the incidence of the umbilical cord getting around the neck through the following methods.

1. Eat Properly

Eat more nutritious foods, avoid tobacco, alcohol, overly spicy and irritating foods, and avoid eating raw seafood, undercooked foods, and foods that are prone to allergies.

2. Exercise appropriately

When exercising, you should choose activities that involve gentle movements, such as walking, swimming, and gymnastics for expectant mothers. It is not advisable to choose strenuous exercise, and you should also avoid an overly noisy exercise environment.

3. Take adequate rest

As an expectant mother, you should have a regular lifestyle, avoid staying up late, playing too much, and avoiding overwork.

4. Proper prenatal education

When conducting prenatal education, you should choose music with beautiful tunes. The rhythm should not be too strong, the sound should not be too loud, the time should not be too long, and the number of times must be appropriate.

In general, pregnant women should pay attention to the "just right" in any action during pregnancy, whether it is diet or exercise, it is best to control it properly. This will effectively reduce the chance of the baby's umbilical cord being wrapped around the neck and allow for the birth of a smart and lovely baby.