Editing Placenta (section)

===Birth===
{{Main|Placental expulsion}}
[[Placental expulsion]] begins as a physiological separation from the wall of the uterus. The period from just after the child is born until just after the placenta is expelled is called the "third stage of labor". 

Placental expulsion can be managed actively, for example by giving [[oxytocin]] via intramuscular injection followed by cord traction to assist in delivering the placenta. Alternatively, it can be managed expectantly, allowing the placenta to be expelled without medical assistance. Blood loss and the risk of [[postpartum bleeding]] may be reduced in women offered active management of the third stage of labour, however there may be adverse effects and more research is necessary.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Begley CM, Gyte GM, Devane D, McGuire W, Weeks A, Biesty LM | title = Active versus expectant management for women in the third stage of labour | journal = The Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews | volume = 2019 | issue = 2 | pages = CD007412 | date = February 2019 | pmid = 30754073 | pmc = 6372362 | doi = 10.1002/14651858.CD007412.pub5 }}</ref>

The habit is to cut the cord immediately after birth, but it may be no medical reason to do this; on the contrary, not cutting the cord could sometimes help the baby in its [[adaptation to extrauterine life]], for preterm infants.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Mercer JS, Vohr BR, Erickson-Owens DA, Padbury JF, Oh W | title = Seven-month developmental outcomes of very low birth weight infants enrolled in a randomized controlled trial of delayed versus immediate cord clamping | journal = Journal of Perinatology | volume = 30 | issue = 1 | pages = 11–16 | date = January 2010 | pmid = 19847185 | pmc = 2799542 | doi = 10.1038/jp.2009.170 }}</ref>