Fellowship Overview

Fetal Center doctors operating

UTHealth Houston Fetal Center is a well-established quaternary referral center for complex fetal anomalies. The patients are referred from throughout the state of Texas and 20 other states. The Fetal Center performs over 150-200 fetal intervention procedures per year, including 70-85 fetoscopic laser surgeries, 20 selective reductions, 40 intrauterine transfusions, and 20-25 in-utero spina bifida repairs. The Fetal Intervention Fellowship program was approved by the Graduate Medical Education Office of UTHealth in early 2012 and was reapproved in March 2018. The program has graduated four maternal-fetal medicine specialists who are currently actively practicing Fetal Intervention.

The fellowship is two years in length. Fellows will be appointed through the Graduate Medical Education Office of UT School of Medicine at Houston, and they will be given a faculty position in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Science as a clinical instructor. Salary level will commiserate with their previous number of years of resident and fellow training level of training.

The fellow will be directly supervised by three fetal interventionists with over 50 years of cumulative experience. Clinical activities will take place in the outpatient area at the UT Professional Building. Unique clinical skills with hands-on training will be obtained in the following areas:

  • Evaluation of complex fetal congenital anomalies by ultrasound and MRI
  • Laser ablation of placental anastomoses in the treatment of severe twin-twin transfusion syndrome
  • Fetoscopic tracheal balloon occlusion for congenital diaphragmatic hernia
  • Ultrasound-guided shunt placement in the fetal thorax or bladder
  • Intrauterine transfusion
  • Radiofrequency ablation and bipolar cord coagulation in the treatment of complicated monochorionic multiple gestations
  • In-utero open and minimally invasive fetal surgical repair of spina bifida
  • Ex-utero intrapartum treatment procedure for air-way obstructions or lung masses
  • Other fetoscopic procedures such as for ablation of chorioangiomas and release of amniotic bands.

Additionally, the fellow will rotate on various clinical services that directly interface with the fetal intervention program including pediatric surgery, pediatric cardiology, and pediatric radiology.