Faculty at the Center for Perinatal Discovery are involved in evaluation of, and research into causes of, perinatal loss, including miscarriage, stillbirth, and neonatal demise.  Our Center comprises of pediatric and perinatal pathologists who routinely perform detailed placental and post-mortem fetal and neonatal examinations (autopsies), and work closely with genetic counselors and colleagues in Obstetrics, Neonatology, and Radiology, in order to identify causes of pregnancy and perinatal loss.

Our group also provides consultation (second opinion) services in both placental pathology and perinatal autopsy; for more information regarding these services, please contact the case referrals team in Anatomic Pathology (casereferrals@health.ucsd.edu).

Our Center is also working to identify biomarkers of placental dysfunction and fetal growth restriction (FGR), conditions which increase the risk of stillbirth. Current prenatal testing (including ultrasound) fails to identify many cases of FGR, particularly late-onset (near-term) FGR, which predisposes to stillbirth.  

In collaboration with colleagues in clinical chemistry, we are screening maternal blood for protein biomarkers, specific to distinct patterns of placental injury, which are associated with FGR. These include vascular patterns of injury (such as maternal and fetal vascular malperfusion) as well as inflammatory lesions (acute chorioamnionitis and villitis of unknown etiology).  The goal is to develop a test for placental function, which, along with imaging and other testing, can be used to identify pregnancies at high risk of stillbirth.