Fetal Conditions

Babies may be born with a condition that affects their lungs or respiratory system, such as: 

• Bronchopulmonary sequestration, a mass of nonfunctioning lung tissue forms inside or outside the lungs
• Congenital cystic lung sequestration, a piece of lung tissue develops outside the lung
• Congenital diaphragmatic hernia, the diaphragm doesn’t develop properly and leaves a hole in the muscle, which allows abdominal organs to move into the chest area
• Congenital high airway obstruction syndrome, the airway is partially or totally blocked
• Congenital pulmonary airway malformation, a mass of lung tissue forms that isn’t connected to the airways
• Pentalogy of Cantrell, a combination of five defects found in the abdominal wall, sternum, diaphragm, pericardium and heart
• Pulmonary agenesis, one or both lungs fail to develop

Before birth, babies can develop cleft and craniofacial conditions affecting the head and face or other conditions that may require plastic surgery to correct. These can include: 

• Agnathia, when one or both jaws are fully or partially missing
• Amniotic band syndrome, strands of tissue from the amniotic sac break free and entangle parts of the fetus, hindering development of the affected body part 
• Cleft lip or cleft palate, an opening or split in the upper lip or roof of the mouth 
• Craniosynostosis, the bones of the head fuse together too soon, affecting brain and skull growth
• Hemifacial microsomia, the two sides of the face develop assymetrically
• Macroglossia, a larger-than-typical tongue 
• Micrognathia, when the lower jaw is smaller than typical
• View more cleft and craniofacial conditions

If your pregnancy involves twins, triplets or more, the fetuses may develop complications during development. These can include:

• Twin-reversed arterial perfusion sequence (TRAP), develops in twins who share a placenta. One twin doesn’t develop a heart and the other twin pumps blood for both of them.
• Twin anemia polychythemia sequence (TAPS), occurs when twins don’t have the same number of red blood cells, meaning one twin receives more oxygen to the brain than the other.
• Twin-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), occurs in babies that share a placenta when blood vessels develop unevenly. One baby receives more blood flow than the other. Selective fetoscopic laser photocoagulation (SFLP) can correct this condition during pregnancy. Abnormal blood vessels in the placenta are sealed using laser energy.

Congenital (present at birth) conditions affecting the digestive system, from the esophagus to intestines or anus, may include: 

• Anorectal malformations, the anus or rectum doesn’t develop properly
• Duodenal atresia, a narrowing or blockage of the first part of the small intestine
• Esophageal atresia, the esophagus doesn’t develop properly and fails to connect to the stomach
• Gastroschisis, a hole in the abdominal wall allows the intestines to grow outside the abdomen
• Imperforate anus, the anal opening doesn’t develop properly and stool can’t pass properly
• Intestinal atresia, blockage in the intestine 
• Intestinal duplication cysts, noncancerous growths that can form anywhere in the gastrointestinal tract
• Intra-abdominal cysts, masses of tissue that grow inside the abdomen
• Omphalocele, the abdominal wall doesn’t fully close during development, causing the intestines to grow in a sac outside the body
• Tracheoesophageal fistula, an abnormal connection between the esophagus and trachea

When there is a problem with a baby’s genes, it can result in conditions such as:

• Down syndrome, an extra copy of chromosome 21, which affects how the brain and body develop
• Fragile X syndrome, a genetic mutation that causes intellectual disability and learning challenges
• Trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome), an extra copy of chromosome 13, which disrupts normal fetal development
• Trisomy 18 (Edwards syndrome), an extra copy of chromosome 18, which can restrict fetal development and lead to life-threatening health conditions
• Turner syndrome, when a female fetus is missing a copy of the X chromosome, which affects fetal development

The specialists at the Fetal Heart Institute of Florida treat complex heart conditions, such as:

• Arrhythmias, irregular heart beats
• Cardiomyopathy, a disorder that affects the heart muscle
• Congenital heart disease, a heart condition present at birth
• Heart failure, the heart isn’t able to pump blood effectively
• Hypoplastic left heart syndrome (HLHS), the left side of the heart fails to develop properly
• Single ventricle defects, when one ventricle (bottom chamber of the heart) is undeveloped or missing

Common conditions that affect the kidneys, urinary tract and excretory system include: 

• Bladder exstrophy, the bladder develops outside the abdomen
• Bladder outlet obstruction, a blockage that prevents urine from leaving the bladder
• Cloacal anomaly, the rectum, vagina and urinary tract merge into one channel (instead of having three separate openings on the skin’s surface)
• Hydronephrosis, the kidneys can’t drain urine, causing them to swell and stretch
• Kidney disease, any condition or disorder that affects kidney function
• Multicystic dysplastic kidney, cysts develop instead of healthy kidney tissue. The condition usually affects only one kidney.
• Obstructive uropathy, urine flow is blocked
• Posterior urethral valves, folds develop that block the urethra of male babies
• Urinary system disorders or obstruction, any condition that affects proper function of the urinary system

Our specialist in the fetal and neonatal neurology program treat neurological defects that affect the brain, spinal cord or nerves. Conditions we treat include:

• Absent septum pellucidum, a membrane between the two hemispheres of the brain is missing
• Agenesis of the corpus callosum, the tissue that connects the two hemispheres of the brain is missing
• Arachnoid cyst, a noncancerous fluid-filled sac that forms on the brain
• Dandy-Walker syndrome, the cerebellum (part of the brain that controls movement and balance) doesn’t develop properly
• Encephalocele, an opening in the skull allows brain tissue to grow in a sac outside the skull 
• Hydrocephalus, a buildup of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain 
• In-utero stroke or bleed, disruption of blood flow to the brain
• Microencephaly, the brain and head don’t grow to normal size
• Mild ventriculomegaly, the fluid-filled ventricles in the brain are enlarged
• Meningomyelocele, a type of spina bifida in which a gap develops in the spine and a fluid-filled sac protrudes from the back
• Neuroblastoma, cancer that develops in immature nerve cells
• Schizencephaly, a brain malformation that causes slits to form in the brain
• Spina bifida, the spine and spinal cord don’t develop properly
• Vein of Galen aneurysm, blood vessels in the brain develop abnormally

You’ll consult with our pediatric orthopedic surgeons if your baby develops a musculoskeletal condition during pregnancy. They’ll help you understand your baby’s diagnosis and make a treatment plan for surgery after birth. 

We monitor fetal conditions leading to cancerous or noncancerous growths that may require treatment after birth. These include:

• Cervical teratoma, a typically noncancerous tumor that develops in the neck
• Mediastinal teratoma, a noncancerous tumour that grows in the space between the lungs
• Pericardial teratoma, a noncancerous tumor that grows in the sac around the heart
• Sacrococcygeal teratoma, a typically noncancerous tumor that develops on the tailbone