Maternity Nursing Q 59
The first thing that a nurse must ensure when the baby’s head comes out is
A. The cord is intact
B. No part of the cord is encircling the baby’s neck
C. The cord is still attached to the placenta
D. The cord is still pulsating
Correct Answer: B. No part of the cord is encircling the baby’s neck
The nurse should check right away for possible cord coil around the neck because if it is present, the baby can be strangled by it and the fetal head will have difficulty being delivered.
Option A: In a newborn who was born a few hours ago, the cord may look plump and pale yellow. One of the umbilical arteries may be visible and protruding from the cut edge. A normal cord has two arteries and one vein.
Option C: The cord is expelled from the mother within a half-hour after birth. It is still attached to the placenta, which is commonly called “the afterbirth.” With its function completed, it is no longer needed and so is discarded by the mother’s body.
Option D: Some cords may pulsate (the pulsation assists the transfer of your baby’s blood back into their body) for as long as 30 minutes or more, where others may stop pulsating at 5 minutes or less after the baby is born.