New Parents Give Life-Changing Gift at Riverview Hospital

Noblesville—Riverview Hospital Maternity Center is proud to celebrate National Cord Blood Awareness Month by continuing to partner with new parents to help improve the lives of others through the donation of umbilical cord blood, umbilical cords and placental tissue that would typically be discarded following the birth of a baby. The donation of these valuable resources is carried out, with consent, only after the safe delivery of the baby. More importantly, this process poses no risk or pain for the mom or baby.

“Riverview Hospital is honored to partner with Lifeline Stem Cell to offer umbilical cord blood, umbilical cord and placenta collection services to our patients,” said Amy Gardner, department manager at Riverview Hospital Maternity Center. “Riverview is one of only 12 hospitals and birthing centers in the state of Indiana that collects cord blood donations through the Lifeline Stem Cell program.”

Cells collected from umbilical cord blood can be used in children and adults to treat more than 75 life-threatening diseases, including leukemia, anemia and lymphoma. And in fact, thousands of Americans affected by such diseases search through donation registries on a daily basis, hoping to find a match. As a result, umbilical cord blood donations play an increasingly important role in meeting medical needs. There are currently more than 700 clinical trials being performed for diseases such as Type I diabetes, Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s, stroke, paralysis, heart disease and wound repair.

Placenta donation is similar to cord blood donation, but it serves a different, yet significant purpose. Amnion, the layer of the placenta that is closest to the baby, is used to treat ocular injuries, burns, decubitus ulcers, diabetic wounds and breast reconstruction, to name a few. Burn victims, who typically go through months of arduous skin grafting without any guarantee of success, can use amnion grafts from placenta donations to accelerate the healing process. Riverview Hospital was proud to discover that some of the amnion grafts that were collected from this program were sent to Boston to treat those that suffered traumatic amputations and burns during the bombing at the Boston Marathon.

Women interested in donating umbilical cord blood, umbilical cords or placental tissue after giving birth at Riverview Hospital should discuss doing so with their obstetricians. There are seven board certified OB/GYN physicians who are currently accepting new patients at Riverview Hospital.