[{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2021\/11\/alishas-high-risk-pregnancy-journey\/#Article","mainEntityOfPage":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2021\/11\/alishas-high-risk-pregnancy-journey\/","headline":"Alisha’s High-Risk Pregnancy Journey","name":"Alisha’s High-Risk Pregnancy Journey","description":"Alisha K. had two high-risk pregnancies, but was taken care of by world-class UPMC Magee-Womens Specialty Services experts in the north, close to her home.","datePublished":"2021-11-16","dateModified":"2023-07-13","author":{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/women-regions","name":"UPMC Magee-Womens","url":"https:\/\/www.upmc.com\/services\/women-regions","sameAs":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/upmc-magee-womens-hospital\/","parentOrganization":"UPMC"},"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"UPMC HealthBeat","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/UPMC-HealthBeat-Logo.png","width":600,"height":60}},"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","@id":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/babies_at_home_CAP.jpg","url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/11\/babies_at_home_CAP.jpg","height":325,"width":754},"url":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2021\/11\/alishas-high-risk-pregnancy-journey\/","about":["Health Topics A-Z","Pregnancy and Childbirth"],"wordCount":1086,"articleBody":"During Alisha K.\u2019s first pregnancy, she was diagnosed with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) at 24 weeks. She needed constant monitoring of her blood sugar and took insulin for the remainder of her pregnancy. Because of GDM, Alisha was induced at 39 weeks and delivered a healthy boy, Luca, now 5, via cesarean section (C-section).When she found out she was pregnant again (this time with twins), Alisha turned to obstetrician-gynecologist \u00a0David Badway, MD, the same doctor who delivered her son. Dr. Badway practices at\u00a0UPMC Magee-Womens Specialty Services at the UPMC Lemieux Sports Complex\u00a0in Cranberry, and at Magee Specialty Services locations in Moon Township and West Mifflin.\u201cHaving a Magee doctor was very important to us. My husband and I knew this pregnancy was high risk and that they had the best knowledge and ability to take care of us and our children,\u201d says Alisha, now 35, who lives in Wexford and works as a registered nurse at UPMC.Carrying twins was an added risk factor on top of her medical history. Those were just the beginning of multiple complications Alisha and her team of UPMC doctors would deal with over the next nine months.\u201cShe started out with one high-risk condition, then developed three more during her pregnancy,\u201d says Dr. Badway. \u201cNo one becomes pregnant thinking these things are going to happen to them. That\u2019s why you want to go where you can receive world-class care. The highest level of care is available at Magee.\u201dIndividualized TreatmentAlisha\u2019s prenatal visits with Dr. Badway took place at Magee Specialty Services at the\u00a0UPMC Lemieux\u00a0in Cranberry. \u201cIt\u2019s a beautiful facility and it\u2019s just 10 minutes from my home,\u201d says Alisha, who adds that she appreciated parking was never a challenge.Alisha also met with two other obstetricians in the practice:\u00a0Emily Curtin, MD, and\u00a0Stephanie Nicholas, MD. \u201cI had every intention of having Dr. Badway deliver my twins. But you can\u2019t choose that moment,\u201d she says. \u201cI thought it was a good idea to see other doctors in case things didn\u2019t go as planned.\u201dFor extra monitoring and care, Alisha was referred to the\u00a0maternal fetal medicine\u00a0(MFM) specialists at\u00a0UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital. While one of her consults was over video, she traveled to\u00a0UPMC Magee\u00a0in Oakland \u2014 just a 25-minute drive away \u2014 for her other visits.Alisha\u2019s doctors kept a close watch on her and the babies as her pregnancy progressed. At 16 weeks, a routine glucose test confirmed she had GDM and needed insulin. In addition to regular monitoring of Alisha\u2019s blood sugar and insulin use, Magee\u2019s MFM specialists began scheduling ultrasounds at 20 weeks to check on the twins\u2019 growth.At 31 weeks, Alisha experienced another complication \u2014 pre-term labor \u2014 that led to twice-weekly non-stress tests at Magee to check on the babies\u2019 health and monitor for contractions. At 34 weeks, she was diagnosed with gestational hypertension, or high blood pressure, yet another complication that required additional monitoring. A C-section initially was scheduled for 38 weeks, but that diagnosis \u2014 and the fact both babies were breech (facing legs forward) \u2014 prompted Dr. Badway to move the planned delivery ahead by one week.Alisha was understandably nervous about the multiple complications she faced during her pregnancy. But she felt confident in her doctors\u2019 abilities.\u201cI knew I was in good hands,\u201d says Alisha. \u201cI had full confidence in my doctors and Magee. I knew no matter what I would be going through, they\u2019ve seen it all and they\u2019ve taken care of it. That was very reassuring. I knew the babies were going to be okay \u2014 and I was going to be okay, too.\u201dAlisha also appreciated the support she received from the staff at both her obstetrician\u2019s office and at Magee. \u201cThey saw me so frequently we became like friends. They celebrated along with me each milestone we reached with the babies,\u201d she says.A Team of Care ExpertsThroughout Alisha\u2019s pregnancy, Dr. Badway kept abreast of her testing and care with maternal fetal medicine specialists via UPMC\u2019s electronic medical records (EMR).\u201cEMR allows us to communicate and coordinate care. I can read notes from the MFM specialists and see what they recommend and any tests they order,\u201d he says.In addition, Dr. Badway and his colleagues at Magee Specialty Services meet regularly to discuss care of high-risk patients like Alisha.\u201cWe review each case so everyone is familiar with the patient, no matter who is on call when she delivers,\u201d he says.Patients also benefit from always having an ob-gyn from the practice on call \u2014 and onsite \u2014 at Magee to handle deliveries. Anesthesiologists, neonatal intensive care (NICU) specialists, and other practitioners are also onsite 24\/7.Special DeliveryOne week before her planned C-section, Alisha\u2019s water broke. By the time she arrived at Magee, she was fully dilated, and the first baby was breech.\u201cThere was no time to wait. We had to act immediately,\u201d says Dr. Curtin, who was on call at the hospital and waiting for Alisha.\u201cEmergency deliveries like this were always a challenge when I worked at a community hospital,\u201d she says. \u201cBut here at Magee, we\u2019re always ready for anything and we have every resource we need right here.\u201dAlisha was quickly wheeled into the operating room where two separate NICU teams and an obstetric team were waiting to jump into action.\u201cIt was scary, but I knew there was nowhere else I\u2019d rather be. I knew they would take the very best care of me and my girls,\u201d says Alisha.Nearly 70 minutes after her water broke, Dr. Curtin delivered Alexa, followed one minute later by Lydia. The babies were placed in incubators for temperature control, had their blood sugar tested regularly, and were monitored for jaundice. Three days later, they went home.Alisha met with Dr. Curtin for her postpartum visit. \u201cI wanted to thank her for getting my girls into the world safely,\u201d she says. \u201cWe are blessed with two healthy, happy babies. We are so thankful for everyone at Magee and Magee Specialty Services who made this possible.\u201dAnd, with UPMC\u2019s strong network of\u00a0pediatric care north of the city and beyond, Alisha\u2019s family continues to receive top-notch medical care, right in their neighborhood. Today, the children regularly see\u00a0Lawrence Butler, MD, a pediatrician at\u00a0UPMC Children\u2019s Community Pediatrics \u2013 Pittsburgh Pediatrics, Wexford office.Schedule your visit online with UPMC Magee-Womens Specialty Services.Editor's Note: This article was originally published on November 16, 2021, and was last reviewed on July 13, 2023."},{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org\/","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"2021","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2021\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"11","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2021\/\/11\/#breadcrumbitem"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"Alisha’s High-Risk Pregnancy Journey","item":"https:\/\/share-dev.upmc.com\/2021\/11\/alishas-high-risk-pregnancy-journey\/#breadcrumbitem"}]}]