The Fetal Care Center's fetal therapy program begins with very accurate diagnoses. Due to the complexities of the abnormalities, as many as 30 percent of patients are referred to fetal therapy centers with an incomplete or incorrect diagnosis. Once the correct diagnosis has been made, our team of maternal-fetal experts informs the mother and her family about all treatment options. Non-directive counseling and support are an important part of our program.

Fetal therapy is the diagnosis of fetal abnormalities and treatment of the fetus before birth. Fetal treatments have been found to help many abnormalities once considered untreatable or only treatable after birth, such as spina bifida and tumors. Fetal therapy may not only save the life of the fetus, but it can also dramatically improve the abnormality. In many cases, fetal therapy improves the child's long-term quality of life.

soon as a diagnosis is established, fetal therapy can begin or may occur at any point during the pregnancy.

Fetal therapy has successfully corrected such conditions as spina bifida, tumors, diaphragmatic hernia, urinary obstruction and others. We evaluate, diagnose and treat many conditions. Our interdisciplinary team of maternal-fetal specialists offers non-directive counseling to patients and families. This means we provide you with all of the information and options available so that you can make a knowledgeable decision on your own.

When you stop lifting weights, the muscles you trained will slip back into their weaker state. Your brain is very different. When you "exercise" your brain with EEG neurofeedback therapy, research shows that the gains attained are retained. Early studies on adolescent children tested before and after therapy and again in longitudinal studies have shown retention of the initial gains they achieved into their mid-thirties, so far.

Upon delivery or prior to delivery, the mixing of maternal and fetal blood may occur. This may cause an Rh-negative woman carrying an Rh-positive baby to develop antibodies against the "foreign" positive antigen (D) she does not have but the baby possesses. They found this can be prevented by immunizing the women by administering Rhogam (RhIG) before (36 weeks) and after delivery. However, guess what? More math is involved.

Rehabilitation is a step in the process of returning to pre-injury activities.  As you progress through treatment, long-term goals are discussed in individual sessions and in the monthly team meetings.  Referrals to volunteer positions, Vocational Counselors, workshops, or previous employers are coordinated when appropriate.

Beta blocker medications are the mainstay of therapy for most patients with the long QT syndrome. These medications are effective in about 90 % of affected subjects. However, a new study (Association of Long QT Syndrome Loci and Cardiac Events Among Patients Treated With Beta Blockers: JAMA. 2004;292:1341-1344) shows that among treated patients with LQT2 and LQT3 genotypes, there still is a high rate of cardiac events.

Tennessee Right to Life is not opposed to research conducted on fetal tissue resulting from spontaneous abortions (miscarriages, eptopic pregnancies). In all other cases this type of research denies the personhood of the unborn child, while acknowledging that their tissue is useful precisely because it is human. Fetal tissue research in effect says to the unborn, "you can be useful to society, you just can't be a member of it."

True fetal distress is rare, and only a handful of cesareans are done for fetal distress. One study indicates that fetal distress only occurs in 1.5% of all VBAC attempts (Finley, Gibbs), while another showed that of mothers who had a primary cesarean for fetal distress, the second labor had 3% of those mothers with fetal distress (Paul, Phelan, Yeh). This brings us to fetal monitoring.

Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is one of a number of birth defects that falls under Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder. These birth defects are caused when the mother drinks during her pregnancy. According to the March of Dimes, 40,000 babies are born each year with some degree of "alcohol-related damage." Fetal Alcohol Syndrome is the most common known cause of mental retardation, and it is the only cause that is entirely preventable.

We frequently work with local speech and occupational therapists to follow through on their recommendations for your child as part of our programs. Many of Bridges's former clients are now functioning at grade level with no additional support in regular education classrooms. Some of these had PDD diagnoses, and others had autism diagnoses. Several no longer fit the criteria for an autistic spectrum disorder diagnosis.

Your therapist will have already provided you with a detailed home exercise program for you to continue doing. Your therapist may also recommend that you utilize a fitness center or local pool to supplement your home program.

A therapy session consists primarily of a therapeutic conversation. It appears to be normal conversation but is strategic to the issues involved. During our initial session we'll discuss what is troubling you and how I might be able to help. Follow-up sessions will be designed around the type of therapy that would be the most effective for you.

Therapy is a very low-tech experience. You and your therapist will decide together what the focus of counseling should be. You may also set some specific goals and/or a timeline and schedule of meetings. During individual sessions, you’ll talk about what is important to you at that moment. Your therapist can help you put your feelings and thoughts into words. Over time, we hope, the two of you will build a trusting and collaborative relationship.

In group therapy, four to eight students meet once a week with one or two group therapists. Group therapy is an opportunity to get help and to help others at the same time. Group members often learn that they are not alone in their experiences or feelings. Group is a great opportunity to practice new ways of being with others, of asserting yourself, or of taking a new role in a social situation.

A Maternal-Fetal Medicine Specialist is an obstetrician/gynecologist who has received 2-3 years of additional education and practical experience to gain special competence in various obstetrical, medical and surgical complications of pregnancy. By virtue of this training and technical proficiency, he/she provides care or consultation for both mother and fetus in a complicated pregnancy.

In the initial session your therapist will take time to get to know you, your strengths as well as the reasons you are seeking therapy. You and the therapist will develop a treatment plan together which can be modified as treatment progresses. Different therapists have various approaches to treatment. Some will be more directive in therapy in regards to giving you advice while others may work with you to develop answers on your own.

Therapy is a way of treating someone with a disease or disorder. There are many different kinds of therapy. Some of the more common kinds include: People with mental illnesses are often treated with a combination of medicinal therapy and counseling. Counseling could take place with a psychiatrist, psychologist, family therapist, or any other person who has been trained to work with people with mental illnesses.

Following the final diagnostic test we will discuss the achieved therapy results with you. If there is the prospect of further improvement the treatment can be continued.