Facetiously, a friend of ours is wont to say: “Mother Nature is
beautiful, but we can improve on her.” Similarly, the
obstetrical complication of umbilical cord prolapse, an accident
of nature, occurs once in 200 to 300 pregnancies – a frequency
of 0.5 percent or less. Prolapse is defined as “a falling down
of an organ or other part, especially its appearance at a
natural orifice.” In the last century, the incidence of
umbilical cord prolapse has remained constant, while fetal
mortality has decreased from 50 to 10 percent – at least in
large urban hospitals – if prolapse occurs after hospital
admission. The numbers were 100 percent for a couple we knew
back East. They were in their late 30s, and it was their first
pregnancy – high hopes and high expectations. She was at term
and had a gush of fluid – her “waters” broke – without labor
“pains” or contractions. Active labor ensued. After a long ride
to the hospital, she delivered a stillborn. The cause: lack of
oxygen because of umbilical cord compression by th