High-Risk Pregnancy Experts Present New Research at Top Meeting

High-risk pregnancy specialists from Cedars-Sinai will share new research at the Pregnancy Meeting of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine in Las Vegas Feb. 8-13. Cedars-Sinai investigators will present findings on postpartum blood pressure management, childbirth safety, reducing racial disparities in maternal healthcare and additional studies of maternal-fetal care.

Highlights and media interview opportunities include:

• Awarding Health Equity Research—Mariam Naqvi, MD, associate professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology, will receive the Disparities Award for Best Research on Diversity and Disparity in Health Outcomes. Naqvi’s study examines whether a standardized substance-use screening program can help reduce racial differences in urine toxicology testing during pregnancy.
• Improving Childbirth Safety With Artificial Intelligence—Melissa Wong, MD, director of Informatics and Artificial Intelligence Strategies in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, is available for media interviews about her new research that uses artificial intelligence to analyze labor-monitoring data and identify early signs of fetal distress.
• Lowering Postpartum Blood Pressure Risk—Sonya Fabricant, MD, a maternal-fetal medicine fellow, is available to explain how a special home monitoring program for patients treated for high blood pressure after giving birth led to a reduction in health complications and better connections to health services.
• Addressing Economic Barriers to Preeclampsia Prevention—Emily Wong, PhD, a research data scientist in Cedars-Sinai’s Department of Computational Biomedicine, can discuss how gaps in social and clinical data—for example, income information—can lead to missed opportunities for preventive care. The missing data may affect some patients’ access to early detection and aspirin therapy to reduce the risk of preeclampsia.
• Managing Postpartum Hemorrhage During an IV Fluid Shortage—Gabriella Dellapiana, MD, assistant professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Catriona Lewis, MD, are available to discuss their research examining the impact of using intramuscular injections of oxytocin to manage postpartum bleeding during a national intravenous fluid shortage. The study found no significant difference in postpartum hemorrhage rates compared with standard intravenous administration.

In addition to discussing research presentations, Cedars-Sinai maternal-fetal medicine clinicians and scientists are available to comment on pregnancy, childbirth, and best practices in high-risk pregnancy care.

Media Contact

To arrange interviews, contact Laura Coverson at 310-562-1112 or [email protected].