The Texas Fetal Center at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital

Katy, Texas (July 3, 2013) – The Texas Fetal Center at Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital hosted an all-day Twin-Twin Transfusion Syndrome (TTTS) Workshop on June 15, 2013 in Houston. Under the direction of the center’s co-director, Kenneth Moise, Jr., M.D., who is also a professor of maternal-fetal medicine at UTHealth Medical School, physicians and nurse representatives from 13 lead TTTS centers in the U.S., Canada and the Netherlands gathered together to discuss the latest advances in the treatment of the disease.

“The workshop was a huge success and we were deeply honored such a wide range of experts in the field were able to attend and actively participate,” said Dr. Moise. “Through this event, we were able to not only establish the Texas Fetal Center as a key influencer and leader in fetal medicine but also develop solid, mutually beneficial relationships with a number of top TTTS centers in North America with which we can now collaborate on future multi-center research endeavors.”

The objective of the workshop was to share the pros and cons of various surgical innovations currently used in the treatment of complex monochorionic twin gestations. Among the featured speakers were the Texas Fetal Center’s own Dr. Moise; co-director and professor of maternal-fetal medicine and pediatric surgery at UTHealth, Anthony Johnson, D.O.; assistant professor of maternal-fetal medicine at UTHealth, Ramesha Papanna, M.D.; and director of prenatal diagnosis and fetal imaging and professor of maternal-fetal medicine at UTHealth, Michael Bebbington, M.D.

The TTTS workshop’s participants, who all funded their own travel, came from top maternal-fetal medicine centers across the world including New York City’s Mount Sinai Hospital, the Maryland Medical Center, the University of Southern California, Brown University, the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, Washington’s Eastside Maternal-Fetal Medicine, the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, the University of California at San Francisco, the Children’s Hospital of Colorado, the Medical College of Wisconsin, the Miami School of Medicine and Leiden University in the Netherlands.

All attendees thoroughly examined the history, methods, techniques and effects of using laser therapy to treat TTTS. More specifically, presentations were made in the following areas:

Ultrasound screening of monochorionic twins
History of laser therapy for the treatment of TTTS
Etiology of premature delivery and premature rupture of the membranes after laser therapy
Use of a laparoscopic-assisted approach for laser therapy in cases of an anterior placenta
Laser therapy for TTTS before 16 and after 26 weeks of gestation
Advantages of a sequential selective method of laser photocoagulation
The use of a Solomon technique to prevent complications after laser
The role of fetal echocardiography in predicting the progression of TTTS
The role of MRI in counseling patient with TTTS
Use of adjunct therapies to improve survival after laser therapy
The diagnosis and treatment of twin anemia-polycythemia sequence
The role of laser therapy in selective intrauterine growth restriction in monochorionic twins
Methods of selective reduction in complication monochorionic twins

“Moving forward, the group has decided to meet annually to continue to build upon our collective efforts to find the best and most effective treatments for this complicated fetal disease,” said Dr. Moise. “In addition, the majority of speakers have agreed to submit chapters to a future monograph for publication in a peer-reviewed journal, which is yet another exciting advancement in our highly specialized field of research.”