What causes the umbilical cord around the neck?

The fetus is restless in the mother's belly, punching and kicking, moving around. In addition, the umbilical cord is too long, there is too much amniotic fluid, and the baby is too small, all of which can cause the umbilical cord to be wrapped around the neck. This can be discovered through B-ultrasound, and expectant mothers should pay more attention to the baby's fetal movements.

1. The umbilical cord around the neck has the following specific reasons:

1. The umbilical cord is too long.

2. Excessive amniotic fluid: The fetus rolls inside, causing the umbilical cord to become tangled.

3. The fetus is too small: there is too much space for movement in the uterine cavity, and the fetus rolls around, causing the umbilical cord to become tangled. Generally speaking, the incidence of the umbilical cord being wrapped around the neck once is about 25%, about 7% if it is wrapped around the neck twice, and about 1/200 to 1/100 if it is wrapped around the neck three times.

2. How is the umbilical cord around the neck usually discovered?

B-ultrasound examination can clearly show whether the fetus has the umbilical cord around the neck. The diagnostic rate of general 2D ultrasound examination is about 33.3%. If color Doppler ultrasound examination is used, the diagnostic rate is about 78.9%, while the diagnostic rate of 3D and 4D ultrasound examinations is close to 100%.

When the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck, it can be confirmed before delivery by checking whether there is any umbilical cord pressure mark on the fetal body through B-ultrasound. An experienced B-ultrasound physician can accurately measure the number of weeks the umbilical cord is wrapped around the neck. To check whether the entanglement affects the health of the fetus, you can observe the changes in the fetal heart rate through fetal electronic monitoring. If there is irregular deceleration or large variation in the fetal heart rate, it should be considered that the umbilical cord is being pulled or squeezed.

However, it should be noted that if the umbilical cord is not found around the neck during a B-ultrasound examination, it cannot guarantee that it will not be around the neck in the future. The umbilical cord may be wrapped around the neck when the baby turns over soon. Conversely, if the umbilical cord is found to be around the neck this time, the baby may break free after a period of activity.