News

The Ellinger family recently reunited with Dr. Hanmin Lee, who performed life-saving surgery on their unborn son in 2008. At the time, the fetus was diagnosed with severe form of congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH), a rare condition where the diaphragm doesn't develop properly, causing the abdominal organs to push into the chest cavity and preventing the lungs from developing fully. UCSF was the first place to perform the challenging balloon tracheal occlusion (BTO) procedure, which helps the lungs develop properly before birth.

Thanks to a new prenatal therapy protocol by Dr. Tippi MacKenzie and the UCSF Center for Maternal-Fetal Precision Medicine, a toddler Ayla has hit developmental milestones despite having a genetic disease that took her siblings' lives.

The NICHD has recognized the research work of Dr Mary Norton and Dr Teresa Sparks into nonimmune hydrops fetalis, in a recent article Promoting Healthy Pregnancy, Labor, and Delivery. Their work has been focusing on using exome sequencing to improve the ability to detect genes involved in the development of nonimmune hydrops fetalis.

The cause of most fetal anomalies is not determined prenatally. Exome sequencing has transformed genetic diagnosis after birth, but its usefulness for prenatal diagnosis is still emerging. Nonimmune hydrops fetalis (NIHF), a fetal abnormality that is often lethal, has numerous genetic causes; the extent to which exome sequencing can aid in its diagnosis is unclear.

A new study by University of California researchers shows the promise of high-throughput DNA-sequencing technologies to improve prenatal diagnosis and pregnancy outcomes for women who have experienced an abnormal prenatal ultrasound.

New webinar from the UCSF Fetal Treatment Center: Placenta accreta spectrum disorder is a varied and increasingly common complication of pregnancy, so ob/gyns need a firm grasp of risk factors and ultrasound signs. A multidisciplinary panel of specialists from the UCSF Fetal Treatment Center explains how they handle patients to maximize outcomes, with a case-based review that illuminates their steps to evaluation and treatment.

New UCSF webinar with maternal-fetal medicine specialist, Mary E. Norton, MD, discussing genetic testing options, with a focus on when exome sequencing has value to families. Also, perinatologist, Teresa N. Sparks, MD, presents specifics on exome sequencing for nonimmune hydrops fetalis, caused by many single-gene disorders, plus a look at findings from her current NIHF study.

In mouse study, stem cells migrated to proper locations in fetal brain and body, differentiated into cells that produce crucial missing protein.

UCSF Perinatolgist and Medical Geneticist Teresa Sparks, MD., Assistant Professor, Ob/Gyn, Reproductive Sciences, recently received the Dru Carlson Memorial Award for Best Research in Ultrasound and Genetics from the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) at their 40th Annual Meeting in Grapevine, TX.ß

Rachel Shulman, MD et al. were awarded the 2020 Manuscript of the Year award by the American Journal of Perinatology, for their publication Fetal Congenital Pulmonary Airway Malformation: The Role of an Objective Measurement of Cardiomediastinal Shift.