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Inside your ovary, the umbilical cord is the lifeline of your baby from your body. The baby’s health and nutritional needs are met by the placenta, and the umbilical cord is the connection between the growing baby and the placenta. Oxygen and other needs of your developing baby is carried by the umbilical cord attached to the baby through a small opening in the abdomen, where the navel is. Post-delivery, the doctor or the midwife detaches the cord to the size of a stump at your babyR 17;s navel. This stump does not have its supply of blood vessels. It eventually dries, shrivels, and withers in a few weeks. Usually, it does not take more than 3 weeks for the stump to disappear.
However, the stump is prone to infections. Your doctor will instruct you on how to take care of the cord until it withers naturally. Complications may occur, and timely action from the doctor is vital. Keep a note on the symptoms, and remember not to panic.
The umbilical cord does not have nerve connections with your baby’s body, so there is no pain when the midwife cuts or clamps it. The doctor usually places a plastic clamp on the stump to speed up its drying. When the stump turns black and falls off, the navel area may require some healing. In fact, there can be a little blood in your baby’s nappy, and it is not necessarily a cause of alarm.
Do remember to avoid pulling on the stump to detach it (even when it hangs only by a thread). Allow nature her natural course to take care of the little body. It takes about ten days for the navel to heal completely after the stump detaches.
The incidence of a newborn developing a umbilical cord infection is 1 in 200. Since it is a bacterial infection, it must not be taken lightly, and if you feel the area around the navel is tender and swollen with red color spread around, it may well be wise to see the doctor.
Since the small wound is healing, it is normal to see some blood around the stump. However, if there are any signs of infection, you must seek your doctor’s advice promptly so as to contain the infection at early stages itself.
Your little one’s umbilical cord will dry and change color before eventually falling off. Parents should note the following aspects of caring for the drying umbilical stump.
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