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Domů What formalities need to be taken care of before your delivery? Perinatal tissues

Perinatal tissues – collection of umbilical cord blood and tissue

“Although this is an issue that is still developing and will require long-term research, if parents can afford it, storing umbilical cord blood is certainly not a mistake.” ~ Assoc. Prof. Michal Koucký, M.D., Ph.D.

In the maternity hospital, it is possible to have umbilical cord blood and also umbilical cord tissue collected during childbirth.

What is umbilical cord blood?

Umbilical cord blood is newborn blood contained in the placenta and umbilical cord. It is the baby’s blood, which does not mix with the mother’s blood, and it contains, among other things, various types of stem cells, of which the most important at present are the so-called hematopoietic stem cells and blood cell progenitors. Umbilical cord blood can be collected at birth, processed, and stored long-term for later use in the treatment and regeneration of the child. The umbilical cord tissue itself is also important, as it can likewise be stored for use in regenerative medicine.

What is umbilical cord tissue?

Umbilical cord tissue is essentially a part of your baby’s umbilical cord. The umbilical cord connects the placenta with the baby and enables the transport of blood from the placenta to the fetus and back. After birth, the cord is clamped (tied) and cut, permanently separating the baby from the mother. At this stage, it is possible to collect umbilical cord tissue (and umbilical cord blood). The remaining umbilical cord stays attached to the placenta and, after delivery of the placenta, is usually discarded.

The umbilical cord has a diameter of 1–2 cm and can reach a length of up to 55 cm. It consists of outer membranes and an inner jelly-like substance called Wharton’s jelly, which is rich in mesenchymal stem cells. These cells have significant regenerative and anti-inflammatory properties.

The best choice is to preserve both

Umbilical cord tissue and cord blood complement each other – for example, cord blood is used in experimental treatments of hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, cerebral palsy, diabetes, and various anemias, while cells from umbilical cord tissue are used in the treatment of various neurological diseases, spinal cord injuries, severe pneumonia, cardiovascular diseases, and others.

How to proceed if you want to preserve umbilical cord blood at birth?
  • Simply call the National Umbilical Cord Blood Center hotline at 736 50 414 and complete a non-binding registration for collection by phone. The hotline staff will gladly answer all your questions, explain everything, and if you are interested in collection, they will prepare the necessary documentation with you.
  • Alternatively, if you prefer not to call, you can also register for collection on the website pupecnikovakrev.cz.
  • You do not pay any deposits or fees in advance!
  • After non-binding registration (by phone or online), you will receive all necessary documentation by email. You do not need to worry about anything else; collection kits are prepared at the hospital. Print the Informed Consent document, which you will need upon admission for childbirth.
  • Upon admission to the hospital, inform staff of your interest in collecting blood and/or tissue and provide the Informed Consent to the midwife.
  • The hospital’s trained medical staff will collect the umbilical cord blood or tissue and send it along with the documentation to the National Umbilical Cord Blood Center.
  • There is nothing to worry about. The collection is safe and painless, performed after birth when the baby is already with the mother. It can be done for all types of births and can even be done during normal delayed cord clamping (up to 60 seconds).
  • At the laboratories of the National Umbilical Cord Blood Center, quality control will be performed, and the blood and/or tissue will be processed and prepared for storage.
  • Approximately 5–6 weeks after collection, you will receive a certificate of processing and storage by mail, along with a summary of information and results. Subsequently, you will receive an invoice by email for collection, testing, processing, and storage.
  • The collected blood and tissue are stored in a cryogenic biological sample repository in liquid nitrogen containers at -196 °C. Biologic material stored this way can maintain its quality for decades. If needed, the stored transplant will be immediately ready for treatment, which can take place anywhere in the world.

Umbilical cord blood and tissue in clinical studies

The application of umbilical cord blood is now available in the Czech Republic and other European countries. Numerous clinical studies are also underway for dozens of serious diseases. See what progress has been made.

Umbilical Cord Blood

Since the beginning of advanced cell therapy using umbilical cord blood until the end of 2021, 276 clinical studies with cord blood were registered worldwide. In 2022, enrollment was ongoing for 110 studies with cord blood, including both advanced therapies and traditional transplants.

Autologous cord blood was first applied in the Czech Republic to a two-year-old child after drowning, diagnosed with hypoxic-ischemic encephalopathy, decerebrate spasticity, and a vegetative coma. Several weeks after administration, the child’s condition began to improve. Clinical studies are investigating its use in treating cerebral palsy, diabetes, or hearing loss.
Source: https://uzdraveniprohonzika.cz/

Umbilical Cord Tissue

Statistics on advanced cell therapy using umbilical cord tissue and other perinatal sources, such as the placenta and amniotic membrane, show that cumulatively by the end of 2021, 464 studies were conducted with cord tissue alone, and 151 studies with other perinatal tissues or combinations of perinatal tissues.

Mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) from cord tissue have regenerative and anti-inflammatory properties and can be used, for example, in 3D bioprinting. They are currently being experimentally applied in the treatment of neurological disorders, spinal cord injuries, and severe pneumonia. MSCs also serve as adjunct therapy in hematopoietic transplants, reducing graft rejection by the recipient.

More about clinical studies at pupecnikovakrev.cz:
https://pupecnikovakrev.cz/klinicke-studie/