Placenta and umbilical cord....an overview | pharmacyteach

Placenta and umbilical cord....an overview

Writer:

Faisal Ghaffar (pharmacist)

e.mail: faisalgh2222@gmail.com

 Introduction

Umbilical cord

After hearing this word the first thing that comes to our mind is the belly button or Navel or also known as Umbilicus.

The umbilical cord is not that, as we can say that the navel formation is due to the umbilical cord.

So what is an umbilical cord?

The umbilical cord is the type of tube that can connect the baby to the mother during pregnancy.

This tube is formed in the mother during pregnancy. In normal females, it is absent but forms in them during pregnancy.

How umbilical cord is formed?

The umbilical cord is formed 5 weeks after the conception or fertilization process.

It slowly progresses and becomes longer till the 28 weeks of the pregnancy and almost reached its average size and length.

LENGTH of the umbilical cord:-

The normal length of the umbilical cord is 50-60cm or 22-24inches.it may vary from person to person but normally it lies in this range.

The too short or too-long length of the umbilical cord is a pathological condition that is discussed below.

 

The function of the umbilical cord:-

The umbilical cord is one of the important organs in pregnancy or in pregnant women.

The primary function of this organ is the supply blood, oxygen, and nutrients from the mother to the baby and remove the waste product from the baby.

The umbilical cord consists of three blood vessels, one of which is a vein and the other two are arteries.

The vein is responsible for the supply of food and oxygen from the placenta to the baby.

While the arteries supply the waste from the baby to the placenta.

There is another word that is coming, again and again, that is the placenta. You will be thinking about it what is the difference between the umbilical cord and the placenta. Let me clear all the doubts that the placenta is completely another organ.

 

The umbilical cord is attached to the placenta. These two are interconnected organs.

what is the placenta?

Let comes to the placenta, which is an organ present in the mother which it developed during pregnancy.

It is the barrier between the mother and the fetus. It is used to supply food and nutrients to the baby or fetus. It is also responsible for removing waste products from the blood of the fetus or baby.

Then comes the relationship between the placenta and the umbilical cord the umbilical cord arises from the placenta.

The placenta is also attached to the uterus of the mother.

Then what happens to the placenta after the baby is born?  The placenta is removed or expelled from the body of the mother also known another word as the third labor pain

Problem-related to umbilical cord:

The most common problem related to the umbilical cord is the Nuchal cord

The Nuchal cord is a problem related to the umbilical cord which is when the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck of the baby or fetus in the womb of the mother then this is called the Nuchal cord.

It most commonly occurs. This condition is not that fetal. Normal delivery can occur but in some rare cases, it is dangerous to the baby as sometimes it is wrapped too tight which leads to a decreased baby heart rate and some other related problems.

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The other problems related to umbilical cords are;

The umbilical cord may be too short or long, it may not be attached to the placenta properly, it may be squeezed, or may be knotted. It also has some morphological abnormalities.

Sometimes a cyst is present in the umbilical cord which causes abnormality in the umbilical cord.

Another includes the vessels of the umbilical cord which also lead to abnormality in the umbilical cord.

The cord is sometimes very thick or sometimes very thin which also leads to the abnormal structure or function of the umbilical cord.

Hypercoiling (the abnormal increase in coiling of the umbilical cord is called hypercoiling) the hypocoiling (the abnormal decrease in coiling of the umbilical cord is called hypocoiling).

There another term used commonly is ANOMALY or BODY STALK ANOMALY which is a rare fetal condition in which the abdominal wall has defected and the organ of the baby is directly attached to the placenta.

This condition is very dangerous and fatal. The baby cannot survive longer

Miscarriage or termination is done and sometimes delivery occurs but the baby is unable to survive more than a few days.

ANOMALY is also commonly known as the absence of the umbilical cord and the organs of the baby are directly attached to the placenta.

I hope you people find it informative and helpful. Thank you.

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