Donna A. Sanzari Women's Hospital

Women’s Health

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The Fetal Care Program

When tests show that a woman is carrying a fetus with a birth defect, genetic disorder, or another condition that may either complicate birth or require immediate newborn care after birth, the multidisciplinary team of Hackensack University Medical Center’s Fetal Care Program stand ready to help. We collaborate with your private obstetrician and your pediatrician to ensure continuity of care.

Your care begins as soon as the diagnosis is made so we can bring together the experts you and your baby need to achieve the best outcome

The Fetal Care Team

Our staff is available for guidance, education, and support throughout your pregnancy and childbirth, and after delivery. Team members meet periodically to create and discuss a plan of care that meets your needs and your baby’s needs. Our team includes board-certified:

  • Perinatologists (maternal-fetal medicine physicians)
  • Neonatologists (newborn care physicians)
  • Pediatric surgeons
  • Pediatric urologists to address urinary abnormalities
  • Pediatric neurosurgeons to manage brain, spine, and other nervous system disorders
  • Pediatric cardiologists to handle heart defects
  • Pediatric maxillofacial surgeons to address abnormalities of the face, jaw, and skull
  • Geneticists
  • Genetic counselors
  • Radiologists
  • Bioethicists
  • Social workers
  • General obstetrician/gynecologists
  • Pulmonary critical care specialists for babies who will need respiratory support
  • Nephrologists to address kidney problems

Fetal care support staff include our advanced nurse practitioner, registered nurses, and ultrasound technicians who specialize in maternal-fetal care.

Types of Fetal Disorders

We connect you with the specialists and subspecialists you and your baby need. Our team has exceptional experience caring for babies with:

  • Congenital diaphragmatic hernia, where abdominal organs protrude into the chest through the diaphragm
  • Congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation (CCAM), a benign cyst in the chest
  • Congenital high airway obstruction syndrome (CHAOS), a blockage of the windpipe or voicebox in the fetus
  • Gastroschisis (intestines outside the belly)
  • Omphalocele (abdominal organs protruding through the belly button)
  • Hydrocephalus (water on the brain)
  • Sacrococcygeal teratoma (SCT), a tumor of the tailbone
  • Twin reversed arterial perfusion sequence (TRAP), where blood flows from a twin with a heart to a twin without a functioning heart
  • Twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), where twins share a placenta and one receives more blood than the other

In some cases, we are able to correct a disorder by treating the fetus through the uterus.

An Onsite Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Our hospital houses a Level III neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) that is equipped to care for newborns in need of specialized care. As a Regional Perinatal Center, we provide the highest level of care for women with high-risk pregnancies and acutely ill newborns, with services delivered by experienced and compassionate neonatologists and NICU nurses. The NICU team is one of the few hospitals with experience resuscitating infants born as early as 22 weeks of gestation.

Access to Pediatric Subspecialists

You’ll have access to a range of pediatric specialists and subspecialists who can provide advanced care to your child not just during infancy, but for years to come through the Joseph M. Sanzari Children’s Hospital. We’ll connect you with any doctors you need when you are pregnant so you’ll know what kind of care your child will need after he or she is born. The location of this collaborative team in the same medical center makes Hackensack University Medical Center an excellent place to have your baby and sets us apart from other hospitals in New Jersey.