Ms. Hoffman is no stranger to New York-Presbyterian Hospital. At birth, Vanessa was diagnosed with a congenital heart disease called Tetralogy of Fallot (TOF). She underwent several surgeries and continued her follow-up care with the physicians at NYPH. Due to her long history with New York-Presbyterian Hospital, we were her first choice for care during her pregnancy.
"When I became pregnant, I was very worried about whether my baby would inherit my condition. I had a lot of questions. Is TOF hereditary? What are our options if we find out that our baby does have TOF? How would my condition affect the pregnancy and my ability to deliver?
During my own long-term treatment, I became familiar with the services available at NYPH and built relationships there. I felt confident that I would receive competent, quality care with Dr. Mary D'Alton's team in the Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine. I was not disappointed. The integrated care that I received from the team of physicians was both informative and reassuring. The care began with the clinical practice manager and midwife, Jeanne Coulehan, who played a big part in making me feel supported throughout the pregnancy. She was extremely warm and helpful as she coordinated my care.
Dr. Lynn Simpson, who specializes in fetal echocardiography, soon became involved in my care. One of my biggest reassurances was knowing that Dr. Lynn Simpson was regularly, thoroughly monitoring both my heart and the baby's heart. Because we started consistently monitoring early in the pregnancy, I felt reassured that any abnormalities would be detected early which would help me make important choices. She was very informative in explaining the medical advances in treatment since my own diagnosis. Through the combination of monitoring and counseling, I felt reassured that, if my baby did have my condition, it would be detected early and he would be at the right place to correct it.
Another wonderful component of the care was the counseling I received from genetic specialist, Dr. Stephen Brown. I really appreciated his clarity and specificity in explaining our tests and the probabilities of my baby inheriting my condition. He has a real talent for explaining complicated concepts in both an easily understandable way and in highly specific terms. I participated in the FASTER trial, which provided me the opportunity to receive several extra sonograms at an earlier date.
Luckily, my pregnancy was uncomplicated and my son, Darius, was perfectly healthy. I hope that my experience can provide confidence to other women who have TOF and hope to those who have children diagnosed with the condition. I am grateful to the Division of Maternal Fetal Medicine for their support and competent care."
