Umbilical cord

Last revised by Andrew Murphy ◉ on 31 Jul 2022

Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data

Citation:

Knipe H, Murphy A, Lukies M, et al. Umbilical cord. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 25 Mar 2025) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-23761

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-23761

Permalink:

https://radiopaedia.org/articles/23761?embed_domain=external.radpair.com%25

rID:

23761

Article created:

6 Jul 2013, Henry Knipe ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was created Henry Knipe had no recorded disclosures.

View Henry Knipe's current disclosures

Last revised:

31 Jul 2022, Andrew Murphy ◉

Disclosures:

At the time the article was last revised Andrew Murphy had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.

View Andrew Murphy's current disclosures

Revisions:

13 times, by 10 contributors - see full revision history and disclosures

Systems:

Vascular, Paediatrics, Obstetrics

Sections:

Anatomy

Tags:

pregnancy, cases

Synonyms:

The umbilical cord
Umbilical cord anatomy

The umbilical cord is a fetal organ that connects the placenta to the developing fetus and is a vital passage for nutrients, oxygen and waste products to and from the fetus.

Gross anatomy

The umbilical cord inserts into the center of the placental bulk and into the fetus at the umbilicus. Variations in insertion can occur. For example, eccentric insertion, marginal insertion and velamentous insertion may be seen ¹. It measures 55-60 cm in length with a thickness of 2.0-2.5 cm ³. The normal cord has two arteries and one vein ^2-3:

paired umbilical arteries (branches of the internal iliac artery) carry deoxygenated blood from the fetus to the placenta
umbilical vein carries oxygenated blood from the placenta to the fetus