Start-up introduces new solution to enable caregivers to provide care, close to the mother, with the umbilical cord still intact For babies who are born healthy, the World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends to delay cord clamping . It means that the umbilical cord is not clamped immediately after birth but after waiting one to three minutes. That way, the baby is still connected to the placenta and receives oxygen rich blood and essential nutrients. However, ill or preterm born babies often require immediate care and are therefore removed from the mother. This is where Concord Neonatal, a start-up from the Netherlands, come into play: they just introduced a new solution, Concord, that enables caregivers to provide care immediately after birth with the umbilical cord still intact until the baby is stable and breathing on its own. To find out more, we interviewed Rianne Rotink, CEO of Concord Neonatal. What is the idea behind Concord Neonatal and what was the starting point? Professor Arjan te Pas and Professor Stuart Hooper have been studying the physiology of fetal to neonatal transition for many years, especially focusing on umbilical cord clamping. Studies with preterm lambs have shown that clamping the umbilical cord before the lungs fill with air results in a dangerous drop in heart rate and blood oxygen levels, increasing the risk of injury to organs. These studies also show that blood flow is a lot more stable during birth when waiting to clamp the umbilical cord until after the lungs aerate and breathing is established. This is called physiological-based cord clamping [1]. The first ideas to develop a solution started in 2015, by a team from Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC). To allow wider implementation and larger multicentre clinical research, Concord Neonatal B.V. was founded in 2017 as a spin-off from LUMC, to bring the solution to the market.   How did you/your team put the idea into practice? The team from LUMC developed a prototype of an innovative mobile trolley, called Concord, that creates a safe workplace for neonatal caregivers to provide lifesaving care with the umbilical cord intact. Concord Neonatal translated this prototype into a CE marked product and on March 7th, at the Dresden Symposium on Delivery Management, we proudly introduced the Concord Birth Trolley. Concord can be equipped with all necessary devices for adequate monitoring and treatment of newborn babies. There no longer is any urgency to cut the cord. All necessary care, without any compromise compared to the current standard care, can be provided immediately. The cord can later be clamped when the baby is fully stable and breathing on its own. When is Concord used in neonatal practice, especially in the care of preterm or ill born babies? Please elaborate on the aspects which are particularly visionary in terms of delayed umbilical cord clamping as recommended by the WHO for improved maternal and infant health and nutrition outcomes. WHO recommends to clamp the cord one to three minutes after birth (link). Unfortunately, it has not been possible for many hospitals to wait in case the baby needs urgent care. Due to lacking infrastructure they cannot … Continue reading Delaying cord clamping – beneficial for ill or preterm born babies