The Reason Why People Consider Cord Blood Storage:

Cord blood storage is the preservation of the cord blood taken from the umbilical cord during birth. The reason cord blood is collected is because it is a rich source of stem cells that may prove to be effective in treating many health problems and conditions. This is why families are now considering the benefits of cord blood storage for their newborn.

In fact, with cord blood storage, many families believe they are protecting their child’s future. This is because stem cells can be used for treating a myriad of diseases. Being rich in stem cells, cord blood is considered to be a life saving resource for both your child, and for your entire family. Also, there is no lengthy procedure involved in cord blood storage.

Cord blood storage is a process that is safe, painless and only takes about fifteen minutes. Once this blood is stored, and the child or some other member of the has a source for treatment of leukemia or certain other blood diseases; the stem cells of the blood may, in fact, save their lives.

Cord blood storage is done in two storage methods. It can be stored in ‘full liquid’ which means that that tank that stores the blood is full of nitrogen at a temperature of 190 degree Celsius. The other storage alternative is in ‘vapor’ where nitrogen is not in liquid form, but found in vapor form at a temperature of 130 degrees.

There are pros and cons with each method however the industry generally recommends storing in vapor. Though it was easier to maintain temperature in tanks with full liquid nitrogen, the latest storage tanks have improved so that it is possible to maintain a consistent temperature in the tanks.

In addition to consistent temperature, there have been certain hesitations about cord blood storage in full liquid. This is simply because it is easier and possible for infectious diseases to infect other specimens in liquid.  Once the cord blood specimen is stored, the temperature of the samples are monitored electronically and alarms notify the laboratory personnel in the case of a severe change in temperature.