Practice Issues   ACOG CODING AND NOMENCLATURE UPDATES   July 2008/Vol 8, Issue 7   June 2008/Vol 8, Issue 6   May 2008/Vol 8, Issue 5   April 2008/Vol 8, Issue 4   March 2008/Vol 8, Issue 3   February 2008/Vol 8, Issue 2   CLICK HERE for the ACOG CODING AND NOMENCLATURE WEBSITE       UPDATES FROM HHSC (CHIPS/MEDICAID)   CLICK HERE FOR "IN TOUCH: HHSC NEWSLETTER"         FREE PARENTING BROCHURES FROM MARCH OF DIMES   CLICK HERE FOR NEW PARENTS DOCUMENTS IN ENGLISH AND SPANISH (FREE TO PROVIDERS)     CORD BLOOD BANKING PAMPHLETS   During the 2007 regular legislative session, legislators passed HB 709 which requires that a physician or other person permitted by law to attend a pregnant woman during gestation or at delivery of an infant shall provide the woman with the brochure before the third trimester of the woman’s pregnancy or as soon as reasonably feasible. For more information please contact Charlotte Brooks, Women’s and Perinatal Health Coordinator, at 512-458-7111, x 6965 or email her at charlotte.brooks@dshs.state.tx.us Or you may order it through the Texas Department of State Health Services' Literature and Inquiry and Order Entry site by clicking here or by calling the DSHS Warehouse at (512) 458-7761 for assistance. Click on link below for pamphlets   Cord Blood Banking Pamphlets from DSHS   ACOG ISSUES REVISED OPINION ON CORD BLOOD BANKING Physicians should give balanced information to their pregnant patients who are considering cord blood banking, presenting both the advantages and disadvantages of public vs. private cord blood banks, according to The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) in a revised Committee Opinion published today in the February issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology. ACOG also advises physicians who recruit patients for for-profit cord blood banking to disclose their financial interests or other potential conflicts of interest to pregnant women and their families. Blood from a newborn's umbilical cord, once considered a waste product that was routinely discarded along with the placenta, is now considered to contain potentially life-saving stem cells. Private banks were initially developed to store cord blood stem cells from newborns, for a fee, for potential future use by the same child or a family member if he/she developed disease later in life. Today, there are public banks that store, for free, stem cells that can be used by anyone needing them similar to how public blood banks work. "Patients need to be aware that the chances are remote that the stem cells from their baby's banked cord blood will be used to treat that same child—or another family member—in the future," said Anthony R. Gregg, MD, chair of ACOG's Committee on Genetics. ACOG's Committee Opinion is a joint document produced by the Committee on Obstetric Practice and the Committee on Genetics. Although ACOG takes no position for or against cord blood banking, it recommends that physicians disclose that there is no reliable estimate of a child's likelihood of actually using his or her own saved cord blood later. Some experts estimate this likelihood at 1 in 2,700, while others argue the rate is even lower. Physicians should also disclose to their patients that it is unknown how long cord blood can successfully be stored. Pregnant women should be aware that stem cells from cord blood cannot currently be used to treat inborn errors of metabolism or other genetic diseases in the same individual from which they were collected because the cord blood would have the same genetic mutation. "Cord blood collected from a newborn that later develops childhood leukemia cannot be used to treat that leukemia for much the same reason," said Dr. Gregg. Federal legislation was passed in 2005 that provides funding for continued growth of a national cord blood registry in the US. Several states have laws (SEE ARTICLE ABOVE) requiring physicians to inform patients about cord blood banking options. Physicians should consult with their state medical association for more information about their individual state laws. Committee Opinion #399, "Umbilical Cord Blood Banking," is published in the February 2008 issue of Obstetrics & Gynecology.       Information for Parents of Newborn Children - FREE FROM DSHS Information for Parents of Newborn Children During the 2005 regular legislative session, legislators passed SB 316, which requires hospitals, birthing centers, physicians, nurse-midwives, and midwives who provide prenatal care to pregnant women during gestation or at delivery to provide the woman and the father of the infant or other adult caregiver for the infant with a resource pamphlet that includes information on postpartum depression, shaken baby syndrome, immunizations and newborn screening. DSHS has been directed to develop this brochure and make it available in English and Spanish on the Internet and for distribution. DSHS is to update the information on a regular basis. In addition, it must be documented in the client's chart that she received this information and the documentation must be retained for a minimum of five years. It is recommended that the information be given twice, once at the first prenatal visit and again after delivery. For more information please contact Chan McDermott, Perinatal Coordinator, at 512-458-7111, x. 6663 or email at You can get this brochure in .pdf format by downloading it from here: http://www.dshs.state.tx.us/mch/Parents_of_newborn.shtm or click on the link below to go to the website. Or you may order it through the Texas Department of State Health Services' Literature and Inquiry and Order Entry site at: http://dbs.tdh.state.tx.us/mamd/litcat/default.asp or by calling the DSHS Warehouse at (512)458-7761 for assistance. The stock numbers are: #1-316 - English #1-316a - Spanish   CLICK HERE for Parents of Newborn Children Brochure     CLICK HERE for link to TDH Postpartum Depression Resource Site   CLICK HERE for link to TDH "WOMEN'S RIGHT TO KNOW" Site

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