pregnancy and childbirth

October 24, 2025

VUMC, Tennessee Donor Services celebrate birth tissue donation partnership

Membranes and cellular components of the umbilical cord and placenta are used across many medical disciplines.

By Danny Bonvissuto
October 21, 2025

From steakhouse to sanctuary: Vanderbilt Birth Center celebrates 10 years

More than 2,792 babies have been born in the freestanding, midwifery-led facility dedicated to low-risk, unmedicated birth experiences.

By Danny Bonvissuto
September 10, 2025

Study reveals new evidence, cost savings for common treatments for opioid use disorder in mothers and infants

Researchers found that while established medications for opioid use disorder in mothers are both superior and cost saving compared to alternative treatment pathways, buprenorphine produced the greatest health gains and cost savings for mothers and infants.

By Jake Lowary
Alexandra Sundermann, MD, PhD, poses for a photo with an ultrasound machine. (photo by Donn Jones)
August 29, 2025

Discrepancies in gestational dating can inform miscarriage risk: study

Investigators measured whether gestational dating determined by ultrasound lagged what the last menstrual period predicted. The bigger the lag, the higher risk of the pregnancy ending in a loss, they found.

By Bill Snyder
Greg and Monica Barton at home with their sons, Carter, left, and triplets Matthew, John and Weston.
July 31, 2025

Turn left for the plan, turn right for the miracle: when triplets couldn’t wait for Nashville

Triplets decided to enter the world at 26 weeks. The plan was Nashville, but it was a left turn and an hour away. Would choosing the local hospital be right?

By Danny Bonvissuto
July 21, 2025

Jonesborough nurse’s heart attack-pregnancy journey leads to Vanderbilt Women’s Heart Center

Her care illustrates the multidisciplinary expertise of the Vanderbilt Women’s Heart Center, Cardiac OB/High-Risk Pregnancy Team and maternal-fetal medicine specialists.

By Matt Batcheldor
April 10, 2025

Celebration of Motherhood was a life-changing experience for one expectant mother and her baby

The community event on Saturday, April 12, celebrates the courage and beauty of motherhood.
By Danny Bonvissuto
March 4, 2025

‘That’s the most scared I’ve been:’ 23 weeks pregnant with a heart condition.

Heather Burich had just driven to Clarksville after an appointment on Vanderbilt Health's Nashville campus when she got a call from a doctor she was yet to meet. The news about her echocardiogram results was alarming.
By Matt Batcheldor
January 2, 2025

2025 New Year’s baby Siora Ray arrives only 12 minutes after midnight

First baby at VWCH: Cash Mitchell; first baby at VTHH: Gwennyth Trinity Grace Freeze-Stele.
By Bill Snyder
July 11, 2024

Jennifer Gaddy receives grants from March of Dimes, Burroughs Wellcome Fund

She studies infection of the female reproductive tract in the context of pregnancy.
By Paul Govern
May 9, 2024

Mom’s the word for mother-daughter Labor and Delivery nurses at Vanderbilt Wilson County Hospital

Denise Zickgraf and her daughter, Victoria Garcia, support new mothers and each other
By Danny Bonvissuto
April 9, 2024

Lifting up voices to celebrate healthy Black births 

Celebration of Black Motherhood on April 20 elevates positive stories and experiences around Black births
By Danny Bonvissuto
March 18, 2024

First baby born in the new Labor and Delivery Rooms on 4 North

The new rooms are the latest in a series of obstetrical enhancements, including the Vanderbilt University Hospital Labor and Delivery Entrance, that provide more space for the increased volume of mothers delivering at VUH.
By Danny Bonvissuto
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