For premature infants, it may be beneficial to delay the clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord by at least 20 seconds, according to a recent study.

Clamping and cutting of the umbilical cord happens within 10 seconds after birth in most cases, in part so members of a medical team can more quickly begin caring for a newborn. However, research from the Nationwide Children's Hospital found that waiting 30 to 45 seconds to clamp could have advantages for extremely preterm infants, HealthDay news reported.

"Infants born prior to 28 weeks gestation represent a high-risk subgroup, so efforts to improve outcomes remain critically important," Carl Backes, lead author of the study and a cardiologist and neonatologist at Nationwide Children's, said in a statement. "There is increasing evidence that delayed cord clamping may give infants in many categories a better chance."

For the study, researchers collected and analyzed data from 40 infants who were born at a gestational age between 22 and 27 weeks. A baby is considered to be full term at 39 weeks; 22 weeks is the considered the limit of viability. The average birth weight of the babies studied was approximately 1.4 pounds.

Researchers found that the preterm infants with delayed cord clamping had higher blood pressure readings in the first 24 hours of life and needed fewer red blood cell transfusions in their first 28 days than infants whose umbilical cords were immediately clamped. In addition, the short delay made no difference in the safety of the infant immediately after delivery.

Backes said the delay allows for an increased blood volume in the baby, which likely improves pulmonary blood flow and other circulatory measures, stabilizing blood pressure.

This study adds to a previous study Backes also led which found that infants whose umbilical cords were clamped approximately two minutes after birth needed fewer red blood cell transfusions than infants whose cords were clamped within 10 seconds.

The findings are published online in the Journal of Perinatology.