Baseline characteristics for the women
| Clamp ≥2 min+neonatal care with cord intact | Clamp ≤20 s+neonatal care after clamping | |
| (n=130) | (n=124) | |
| Gestation at randomisation (weeks) ≥32 | 1 (1%) | 1 (1%) |
| 30 to 31+6 | 44 (34%) | 46 (37%) |
| 28 to 29+6 | 38 (29%) | 42 (34%) |
| 26 to 27+6 | 25 (19%) | 21 (17%) |
| <26 | 22 (17%) | 14 (11%) |
| Gestation at birth (weeks) ≥32 | 2 (2%) | 2 (2%) |
| 30 to 31+6 | 47 (36%) | 44 (35%) |
| 28 to 29+6 | 35 (27%) | 43 (35%) |
| 26 to 27+6 | 25 (19%) | 21 (17%) |
| <26 | 21 (16%) | 14 (11%) |
| Age (years), mean (SD) | 30.3 (6.1) | 29.2 (6.6) |
| Primiparous | 69 (53%) | 75 (60%) |
| Twin pregnancy | *7 (5%) | 10 (8%) |
| Pregnancy complications | ||
| Prelabour rupture of membranes | 43 (33%) | 40 (32%) |
| Spontaneous onset of labour | 31 (24%) | 33 (27%) |
| CTG abnormalities/fetal distress | 21 (16%) | 23 (19%) |
| Pre-eclampsia/PIH | 33 (25%) | 24 (19%) |
| Antepartum haemorrhage/placenta previa | 14 (11%) | 18 (15%) |
| Chorioamnionitis | 15 (12%) | 14 (11%) |
| Fetal growth restriction/small for gestational age | 13 (10%) | 13 (10%) |
| Other† | 5 (4%) | 6 (5%) |
| In last week received | ||
| Magnesium sulfate | 67 (52%) | 49 (40%) |
| Not known | 4 (3%) | – |
| Corticosteroids | 117 (90%) | 111 (90%) |
| Caesarean section | 82 (63%) | 67 (54%) |
| Before labour | 69 | 57 |
| During labour | 13 | 10 |
| Vaginal birth | 48 (37%) | 57 (46%) |
| Breech presentation | 9 | 8 |
*For two, one twin known intrauterine death before randomisation.
†Clamp ≤20 s: abdominal pain (n=2), severe asthma (1), pyelonephritis (1), antiphosphate lipid syndrome (1) and not known (1). Clamp ≥2 min: renal failure and diabetes (1), previous cervical surgery (1), coagulopathy (1), Crohn’s disease (1) and hypotension (1).
CTG, cardiotocograph; PIH, pregnancy-induced hypertension.