Obstetrics and Gynecology

The maternal and fetal medicine experts at Mayo Clinic offer you the most advanced treatment and care for complex maternal and fetal diseases in pregnancy. The clinic's multidisciplinary team of doctors includes those trained in treating pregnant women with complex problems (maternal-fetal medicine specialists), experts in treating children with congenital conditions (neonatologists, pediatric surgeons, neurosurgeons, urologists, nephrologists, neonatologists) and specialists with extensive experience in fetal surgery. These specialists complement obstetrical care providers and can co-manage complex conditions before or during pregnancy.

A dedicated team of doctors, nurses and allied health professionals ensures the coordinated approach necessary for intrauterine therapy when appropriate and optimal planning for delivery and neonatal care. You will receive support from a compassionate team of providers including dietitians, genetics counselors, social workers and nurse specialists. Perinatal Education offers a class to help prepare families for their newborn's hospitalization in intensive care at Mayo Clinic's campus in Minnesota. This two-hour class is offered monthly or by request through Perinatal Education.

Fetal care team

The doctors, nurses and allied health professionals of the fetal care team use a team-based, multidisciplinary approach to help women experiencing high-risk pregnancies. They use advanced imaging techniques to accurately diagnose babies with birth defects prenatally and connect parents with neonatologists and pediatric subspecialists when needed. This team of experts works with you to develop a treatment plan specific to your situation, such as any needed intrauterine therapy and the route and timing of delivery. Your care team also coordinates a smooth care transition for your baby.

Conditions treated

• Abnormal alpha-fetoprotein (AFP)
• Complex maternal or fetal cardiac disease
• Fetal anemia
• Fetal arrhythmia
• Fetal bladder outlet obstruction
• Fetal congenital diaphragmatic hernia
• Gastroschisis or omphalocele
• Inherited and acquired thrombophilias
• Lower urinary tract obstruction (LUTO)
• Maternal rhesus (Rh) factor disease or atypical alloimmunization
• Placenta previa or placenta accreta
• Pregnancy complicated by cancer or transplant
• Spina bifida
• Twin-twin transfusion syndrome
• Twin reversed arterial perfusion (TRAP) sequence or acardiac twin

Tests and procedures

• Abnormal alpha-fetoprotein (AFP) or quadruple screen test
• Chorionic villous sampling
• Fetal surgery
• Fetal therapy, including intrauterine blood transfusion, laser ablation of twin transfusion and radiofrequency ablation
• Fetal ultrasound and other sophisticated imaging technologies
• First trimester Down syndrome screening
• Genetic amniocentesis
• Increased maternal or paternal age
• Increased risks for genetic conditions
• Noninvasive prenatal testing
• Percutaneous umbilical blood sampling
• Targeted imaging for babies at risk of birth defects and fetal anomalies

Fetal surgery

At Mayo Clinic's campus in Rochester, Minnesota, you will find a specialized multidisciplinary fetal surgery team trained to care for women with pregnancies complicated by all forms of fetal distress and abnormalities. Improvements in prenatal testing, imaging and technology have provided maternal-fetal medicine specialists with new tools to address these conditions.

Maternal care team

The maternal care team uses a coordinated, multidisciplinary team approach to help women experiencing high-risk pregnancies. Services include:

• Care and counseling before pregnancy begins (preconception care) for women who have increased medical, surgical or genetic risks
• Integrated care for chronic conditions during pregnancy:
• Cancer
• Heart disease
• High blood pressure
• Pre-eclampsia and hypertensive disorders in pregnancy
• Diabetes or endocrine disorders
• Gestational diabetes
• Kidney disease
• Infectious diseases
• Gastrointestinal disorders
• Rheumatologic diseases
• Obstetric complications:
• Preterm labor and preterm birth
• Multiple gestation
• Fetal growth disorders
• Recurrent pregnancy loss

Research

Researchers of the maternal and fetal medicine specialty group engage in research on the effective use of health care resources to help people who are pregnant. They have advanced the field with research in preterm labor assessment, fetal assessment during maternal surgery, effective use of blood products during pregnancy, decreasing maternal exposure to radiation, placenta previa and abnormal placentation, integration or acculturation, and fetal surgery.

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