Storing your umbilical cord blood in an umbilical cord blood bank for the treatment of dreaded diseases is what cord blood banking is all about. Of course there is more to it than that. Firstly, what is cord blood? Cord blood is the blood that is removed from the placenta, after it is separated at child birth. This blood has stem cells in it that can recreate themselves into the red and white blood cells as well as the muscle and brain cells.
The Advantages Of Using Cord Blood
The cord blood is very useful in curing certain blood and immune system diseases, not to mention various neurological disorders. The only other way to treat these diseases is to get stem cells from the bone marrow of the patient, and this requires surgery. Umbilical cord blood, on the other hand, can be more easily obtained, besides having other advantages as well.
How Cord Blood Is Stored
Still, to use this cord blood in the future, you have to store it. That is where umbilical cord blood banks come into the picture. These banks store the baby’s cord blood at very low temperature in liquefied nitrogen to preserve it for future use. This way the blood can be safely stored for up to ten years.
Types Of Cord Blood Banks
Umbilical cord blood banks are of two types, private and public. Private cord blood banks are those banks which charge you for storing your baby’s cord blood. The blood can be used only by you or your immediate family members any time you want. Here, you are your own donor. And you can be sure that the blood will be available to you when you need it. In public cord blood banks, the blood is stored for you for free. However, here your cord blood can be used by anyone.
Now that you know what cord blood is and how umbilical cord blood banking is done, you will find it easier to decide if you wish to preserve your baby’s cord blood. For more information visit pregnancy period.
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