How Do I Care for an Umbilical Cord Stump?
The treatment of the umbilical cord of the newborn means that the doctor ligates the umbilical cord that is connected to the mother and cares for the stump after the fetus is born, in order to prevent infection and sepsis, which is one of the important contents of nursing the newborn.
Management of neonatal umbilical cord
- Chinese name
- Management of neonatal umbilical cord
- The treatment of the umbilical cord of the newborn means that the doctor ligates the umbilical cord that is connected to the mother and cares for the stump after the fetus is born, in order to prevent infection and sepsis, which is one of the important contents of nursing the newborn.
- The umbilical cord is the main link between the fetus and the mother. It transfers nutrients to the fetus through the umbilical vein, and then brings waste to the mother through the umbilical artery, which is excreted by the mother instead. After the fetus is born, the doctor will ligate the umbilical cord, and the newborn will "disconnect" from the mother and become an independent person. However, the stump of the umbilical cord remaining on the newborn's body is very important for the newborn before shedding. Because the stump of the umbilical cord is an open wound and rich in blood, it is a good place for the growth of pathogenic bacteria. If improperly handled, the bacteria will take the opportunity to cause systemic infection and lead to neonatal sepsis. Therefore, taking good care of the umbilical cord is one of the important contents of nursing newborns.
- The time for the umbilical cord to fall off is related to the method of ligation of the umbilical cord after birth. If the stump is short, it will fall off 3-4 days after birth. Conversely, it takes 5-7 days to fall off. If it does not fall off for more than 7 days, or even longer, you should go to the hospital for further examination and treatment. If the remaining umbilical cord becomes dry black, it can be gently scrubbed with 95% alcohol, and the dry black umbilical cord can fall off. If it still does not fall off, you should go to the hospital for treatment and never cut it blindly.
- Before the umbilical cord is detached, keep the umbilical cord dry. After the newborn comes home from the hospital, there is no special situation. If there is no umbilical infection, you can not cover it with gauze. This can promote the umbilical cord to dry out more quickly. Do not cover wet clothes or diapers on the umbilicus. If the covered gauze is wet, replace it in time. After opening the gauze during replacement, use a 75% alcohol cotton ball to gently scrub from the root of the umbilical cord to the surrounding skin. Scrub them back and forth to avoid bringing germs from the surrounding skin into the umbilical root and causing infection.
- After the umbilical cord is detached, a layer of crusts can be left in the umbilical cord, which will fall off naturally. It is normally dry and does not require any further treatment. If the umbilical is wet or there is a little liquid leaking, you can use a cotton swab dipped in 75% alcohol to gently wipe it, and then apply 75% alcohol to the umbilical root and surrounding skin. Never use gentian purple on the umbilical. Doing so not only affects the observation of umbilical infection, but also crusts the surface of the umbilicus, making it difficult to discharge the purulent secretions below, and aggravates the infection.
- If you find white granules growing in the umbilical area, or purulent secretions in the umbilical area, and the surrounding skin is swollen, you should go to the hospital for treatment in time to prevent the disease from getting worse.