PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Nestor E Vain
AU  - Daniela S Satragno
AU  - Juan Esteban Gordillo
AU  - Ariel L Fernandez
AU  - Guillermo Carrolli
AU  - Norma P Romero
AU  - Luis M Prudent
TI  - Postpartum use of oxytocin and volume of placental transfusion: a randomised controlled trial
AID  - 10.1136/archdischild-2018-316649
DP  - 2020 Jan 01
TA  - Archives of Disease in Childhood - Fetal and Neonatal Edition
PG  - 14--17
VI  - 105
IP  - 1
4099  - http://fn.bmj.com/content/105/1/14.short
4100  - http://fn.bmj.com/content/105/1/14.full
SO  - Arch Dis Child Fetal Neonatal Ed2020 Jan 01; 105
AB  - Objective To assess whether oxytocin administered before clamping the umbilical cord modifies the volume of placental transfusion.Design Randomised controlled trial.Methods Mothers of term infants born vigorous by vaginal delivery with informed consent provided in early labour were randomly assigned to oxytocin (10 IU) given intravenously within 15 s of birth (group 1) or after clamping the umbilical cord 3 min after delivery (group 2). Soon after birth, all infants were weighed using a 1 g precision scale and subsequently placed on the mother’s abdomen or chest. At 3 min, in both groups, the cord was clamped and cut, and the weight was again obtained. The primary outcome (volume of placental transfusion) was estimated by the difference in weights.Results 144 patients were included. There were no differences in the primary outcome: infants in group 1 (n=70) gained a mean weight of 85.9 g (SD 48.3), and in group 2 (n=74) 86.7 g (SD 49.6) (p=0.92). No differences were found in secondary outcomes, including newborns’ haematocrit and bilirubin concentrations and severe maternal postpartum haemorrhage. On the advice of the Data and Safety Monitoring Committee, the trial was stopped due to futility at 25% of the planned sample size.Conclusions When umbilical cord clamping is delayed for 3 min, term newborn infants born vigorous receive a clinically significant placental transfusion which is not modified by the administration of intravenous oxytocin immediately after birth.Trial registration number NCT02618499.