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If you are due around the end of the year or beginning of the new year and your doctor or midwife has told you that you will be delivering at Allegheny General Hospital, then please read the information below. If you are due after the first of the year and plan on delivering at West Penn Hospital, then please click here for information about their High Risk Obstetrics and Fetal Medicine Services
.
For more information about the integration of the OB and Newborn Services at Allegheny General with West Penn Hospital, click here.
Program for High Risk Obstetrics and Maternal-Fetal Medicine Services at AGH
Pregnancy is a time of great expectations. Obstetricians and family physicians have the unique privilege of sharing in this special time by helping an expectant mother understand and cope with the physical changes she is undergoing. When a high risk situation or complication during pregnancy causes worry, an obstetrician wants to refer a patient to a facility where she will be confident and secure and where all of her needs will be met in a caring environment.
Allegheny General Hospital's Program for High-Risk Obstetrics and Maternal-Fetal Medicine combines the latest technology in high-risk obstetrical services with personalized care to help ensure the confidence of both the expectant mother and her physician.
Continuity of Care
We provide a unified, interdisciplinary approach to high-risk obstetrics. The program is coordinated by three perinatologists and integrates the expertise of Allegheny General's Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Division of Neonatology (in the Department of Pediatrics). Full service, advanced facilities for both mother and baby are located under the same roof, on the same floor, saving precious time in situations where every moment is critical.
The program provides personal attention and maximizes continuity of care. The same perinatal team remains with the patient throughout the pregnancy to help ensure that no development is overlooked. This increased attentiveness allows us to tailor the program to each patient's needs and to each referring obstetricians's capabilities and requirements.
Varying degrees of participation exist--a referred patient may need only one visit to the program for a test or consultation, or in some cases, a full transfer of care can take place. In every case, our perinatologists act primarily as coordinators of care, making sure that all of the necessary specialists are involved in a patient's care.
Overall, we take a flexible, consultative approach to high-risk care, keeping the referring physician involved in each stage of care. The program's physician's provide prompt feedback to a referring physician via telephone and fax. The referring physician is also provided with direct, 24-hour access to a perinatologist via telephone and pager so there is no gap in communication.
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Perinatal Consultations
The perinatal staff is widely accessible for consultations to assess the risk factors involved in a patient's pregnancy. The following perinatal services are provided:
- Consultations regarding management of a pregnancy complicated by maternal disease such as diabetes mellitus, hypertension, cardiac disease and renal disease
- Consultations regarding previous pregnancy issues, including repeated losses, preterm delivery, severe intrauterine growth restriction and pre-eclampsia
- Consultation or complete management regarding abnormal fetal conditions
- Referral and/or assistance in performing amniocentesis (genetic and pulmonary) and in managing isoimmunization
- Advice regarding the timing and method of delivery
The perinatal staff is also available by telephone for consultations on complications that may develop during pregnancy.
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Ultrasound Evaluations
All obstetric ultrasound evaluations in the Department of OB/GYN are performed by a sonographer and reviewed by a perinatologist who can offer detailed explanations to the patient during  the evaluation and provide prompt, accurate feedback to the referring physician. Any abnormal results which require immediate attention are reported by telephone to the patient's physician.
Ultrasound evaluations are provided at Allegheny General for possible fetal anomalies including assessments for:
- Elevated maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (MSAFP) levels
- Increased aneuploidy (chromosome abnormality) risk by multiple marker screening (MMS)
- Neural tube/CNS defects
- Omphalocele/gastroschisis
- Renal abnormalities
- Cardiac defects
Our staff also uses ultrasound to evaluate concerns for abnormal fetal growth including both intrauterine growth restriction and macrosomia. Ultrasound evaluations test for abnormalities of amniotic fluid volume such as polyhydramnios and oligohydramnios and ultrasound is used with multiple gestations for questions of placentation, growth and concordance.
3D and 4D Ultrasounds
We receive many inquires regarding 3D and 4D ultrasounds of unborn babies. We perform ultrasound studies only as a diagnostic study ordered by a physician. We adhere to the guidelines of many national medical organizations including the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine. We do not perform examinations for keepsake or entertainment purposes. If we are able to obtain 3D pictures in the course of the examination, we are happy to provide them for our patients at no additional charge.
AGH Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology Ultrasound Unit Accreditation
The Allegheny General Hospital Department of
OB/GYN Ultrasound Unit is among a select group of ultrasound practices
to
achieve accreditation in obstetric and gynecologic ultrasound. The
American Institute Of Ultrasound in Medicine's Ultrasound Practice Accreditation Council reviews numerous applications
for accreditation each year. Allegheny General Hospital's unit
has consistently achieved accreditation for meeting voluntary standards set by the diagnostic
ultrasound profession.
Every three years, the AGH OB/GYN Ultrasound practice is
reviewed including
personnel, physical facilities, documentation, storage and record-keeping
practices, policies and procedures and quality assurance methods; in meeting the AIUM standards. "This accreditation further validates the outstanding quality of
obstetrics and gynecological care that AGH offers women in the region, and the
commitment we have to maintaining the highest practice standards and most
advanced technological resources to meet that challenge,” said Ronald Thomas, M.D. Director, Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine at AGH.
Participation in the AIUM’s Ultrasound Practice Accreditation
Program is voluntary
and is available to practices in the following areas of ultrasound:
abdominal/general,
obstetrical or focused obstetrical, gynecological, vascular, breast or any
combination of these areas. The accreditation process allows ultrasound
practices the opportunity to assess their strengths and weaknesses and initiate
changes for improving and strengthening their overall operation.
AGH offers a wide range of obstetric and gynecological services,
including a Level III
Neonatal Intensive Care Unit. Approximately 1,400 babies are born each year in
Allegheny
General’s technologically advanced labor, delivery and
recovery rooms. The hospital’s Division of Maternal- Fetal Medicine combines the
latest technology in high-risk obstetrical services with personalized care.
Health-care professionals in the division oversee high-risk pregnancies,
including services such as prenatal diagnosis and antenatal fetal assessment.
OB/GYN ultrasounds are performed on patients with a physician’s order. The
department is equipped exclusively with state-of-the-art ultrasound equipment
operated by registered diagnostic
OB/GYN sonographers.
"The AIUM accreditation is another measure of excellence we are proud to acquire, said Eugene Scioscia, Jr. M.D., System Vice Chair, WPAHS Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. "Exceptional obstetrics and gynecological care has been a cornerstone of Allegheny Genera''sl committment to providing high quality, comprehensive health-care services to families in the greater Pittsburgh community for more than a century. At AGH, we recognize that a majority of decisions related to health care are made by women."
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Fetal Testing
The program offers a full range of fetal testing, including the following:
- Reviews of non-stress tests
- Evaluation of biophysical profiles
- Amniotic fluid indices
- Doppler flow assessments
- First Trimester Screening
Communication of results to the referring physician is immediate, via telephone or fax.
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Physicians
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