Umbilical cord from the offspring. The cord along with the placenta is often eaten by the mother, to provide nourishment and to dispose of tissues that would otherwise attract scavengers or predators. In chimpanzees, the mother leaves the cord in place and nurses her young with the cord and placenta attached until the cord dries out and separates naturally, within a day of birth, at which time the cord is discarded. (This was first documented by zoologists in the wild in 1974.) Some species of shark — hammerheads, requiems and smooth-hounds — are viviparous and have an umbilical cord attached to their
Umbilical cord prolapse Umbilical cord prolapse Umbilical cord prolapse is when, during labor, the umbilical cord comes out of the uterus with or before the presenting part of the baby. The concern with cord prolapse is that pressure on the cord from the baby will compromising blood flow to the baby. The greatest risk factor is having had more than two previous children with the current baby in an abnormally positioned within the uterus. Other risks include a premature or small baby, twin pregnancy, and too much amniotic fluid. Whether medical rupture of the amniotic sac is a risk is controversial. The diagnosis