Effat Jahan¹, Md. Nazrul Islam², Ayesha Akhter³, Zakia Sultana4, Halima Akhter Suchi5,
Jesmin Sultana6
1. Assistant Professor, Department of Anatomy, Jalalabad Ragib Rabeya Medical College, Sylhet.
2. Assistant Professor, Department of Neurology, North East Medical College, Sylhet.
3. Professor and Head, Department of Anatomy, Jalalabad Ragib Rabeya Medical College, Sylhet.
4. Professor and Head, Department of Anatomy, Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College, Sylhet.
5. Assistant Professor, Department of Anatomy, Jalalabad Ragib Rabeya Medical College, Sylhet.
6. Associate Professor, Department of Anatomy, Jalalabad Ragib Rabeya Medical College, Sylhet.
Abstract
The umbilical cord is the vital lifeline of the fetus and is tasked with providing unimpeded blood to the developing fetus and has long been recognized through rituals, symbolism and medical science. Although one of the most vulnerable and vital components of the fetal anatomy, the umbilical cord is one of the least studied fetal structures. Yet, prenatal survival is dependent on its function. The objective of this cross-sectional observational study is to observe the factors influencing the length of umbilical cords of full term babies. One hundred umbilical cords of full term babies delivered with normal vaginal delivery or caesarean section of singleton pregnancy were included in this study which was carried out in the Department of Anatomy, in collaboration with the Department of Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Sylhet MAG Osmani Medical College Hospital, Sylhet from July 2010 to June 2011. The length of the umbilical cord was ranged from 29.5 to 92 cm with the mean 55.3 SD plus/minus 11.04 ) cm. The length of the umbilical cord was average (40-70 cm) in most of the umbilical cord (84.0%), in 8.0% of cases cord was short cord (<40 cm) and in 6% cases cord was long (>70 cm). The diameter of the umbilical cord was ranged from 0.9 to 2.1 cm with the mean 1.5 (SD plus/minus 0.4) ст. The umbilical cord length was significantly increased with increasing parity (p < 0.01) baby (p < 0I) and birth weight (p < 0.05) but no significant correlation between the length and diameter (p > 0.05) , gestational age and maternal age (p > 0.05)
Key words: Umbilical cord, parity, gestational age.