Maternal-Fetal Medicine Research

Our Program

The Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine is engaged in clinical, basic bench and epidemiological research as one of its primary missions. Our strength lies in the expertise and diverse interests of our faculty, as well as in the collaborations with multiple other disciplines and departments throughout the School of Medicine, The Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the School of Biomedical Engineering. The strong research infrastructure of the Johns Hopkins University forms a solid foundation for the success of our integrated research program for Maternal-Fetal Medicine.

We have established the JH Womb (Johns Hopkins Well-being of Mothers and Babies) Program and Physiology In Pregnancy Program.

Our research faculty participate in The Johns Hopkins Women’s Health Research Group, a collaborative network of researchers from the Schools of Medicine, Nursing and Public Health.

Our research program now provides semi-monthly meetings (“Work in Progress/laboratory data” and “Research concepts”) to foster multi-disciplinary research through pilot programs and retreats.

Our Research Director

Ahizechukwu C Eke, M.B.Ch.B., Ph.D., M.P.H.

Expertise: Autoimmune Diseases, Cervical Cerclage, Genetic Diseases, High Blood Pressure (Hypertension), High-risk Pregnancy

Research Interests: Preterm birth, Pharmacokinetics, Pharmacodynamics, Pharmacoepidemiology, Pharmacogenomics, Pharmacomicrobiomics, HIV in pregnancy, Maternal Health Policy, Medical and Surgical Complications in Pregnancy

Faculty Research

Select a faculty member to learn more about his/her research and to view recent publications.
  • Abimbola Aina, M.D.

    • Assistant Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Maternal Fetal Medicine, Multiple Gestations, Obstetrics

    Research Interests: Preterm labor, Thrombophilia in pregnancy, Cervical incompetence

  • Cynthia Holcroft Argani, M.D.

    • Director, Labor and Delivery at Johns Hopkins Bayview Medical Center
    • Assistant Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Gynecology and Obstetrics, High Risk OB, Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Multiple Gestations, Obstetrics

    Research Interests: placental histopathology, perinatal disease

  • Ahmet Alexander Baschat, M.D., M.B. B.CH. B.A.O.

    • Director, Center for Fetal Therapy
    • Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics
    • Joint Appointment in Surgery

    Expertise: Amniotic Band Syndrome (ABS), Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia, EXIT Procedure, Fetal Cardiac Defects, Fetal Echocardiography

  • Jessica Linda Bienstock, M.D., M.P.H.

    • Director, Division of Education, Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics
    • Senior Associate Dean for Graduate Medical Education/DIO
    • Director of Graduate Clinical Education
    • Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Gynecology and Obstetrics, Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Multiple Gestations, Obstetrical Ultrasound, Obstetrics

    Research Interests: fetal ultrasound abnormalities, fetal genetic disorders, medical education in obstetrics and gynecology

  • Karin J Blakemore, M.D.

    • Director, Prenatal Genetics
    • Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics
    • Professor of Oncology

    Expertise: Dysmorphology, Fetal Ultrasound, Gynecology and Obstetrics, Hematologic Disorders in Pregnancy, Human Genetics

    Research Interests: Fetal genetic disorders, Prenatal Diagnosis and Fetal Treatment, In Utero Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation, Hemoglobinopathies, Red cell and platelet alloimmunization, Intrapartum physiology and outcomes, Placental development and abnormalities

  • Rita Wesley Driggers, M.D.

    • Medical Director, Maternal Fetal Medicine, Johns Hopkins Medicine, Sibley Memorial Hospital
    • Associate Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Gynecology, Gynecology and Obstetrics, High Risk OB, Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Obstetrics

    Research Interests: Preterm birth, Pregnancy and diabetes

  • Ernest Marshall Graham, M.D.

    • Director, Maternal-Fetal Medicine Fellowship Program
    • Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Gynecology, Gynecology and Obstetrics, Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Obstetrics

    Research Interests: intrapartum fetal monitoring, perinatal brain injury

  • Janice Lynn Henderson, M.D.

    • Director, Fetal Assessment Center
    • Assistant Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Fetal Cardiology, Gynecology and Obstetrics, High Risk OB, Multiple Gestations, Obesity

    Research Interests: obesity in pregnancy

  • Nancy Hueppchen, M.D., M.S.

    • Associate Dean for Undergraduate Medical Education, School of Medicine
    • Director of Medical Student Education, GYN/OB
    • Associate Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Gynecology and Obstetrics, High Risk OB, Medical Education, Multiple Gestations, Obstetrics

    Research Interests: fetal ultrasound abnormalities, fetal genetic disorders, abnormal maternal serum screening, resident and medical student education

  • Angie Child Jelin, M.D.

    • Program Director, Maternal-Fetal Medicine Fellowship
    • Associate Director, Prenatal Genetics
    • Associate Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Amniocentesis, Chorionic Villus Sampling, Fetal Anomalies, Fetal Ultrasound, High Risk OB

    Research Interests: fetal genetic disorders, whole exome sequencing

  • Lorraine Anne Milio, M.D.

    • Co-Director, HALO Program
    • Assistant Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Gynecology, Gynecology and Obstetrics, Multiple Gestations, Obstetrics

  • Jena Lyn Miller, M.D.

    • Assistant Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics
    • Assistant Professor of Surgery

    Expertise: Amniotic Band Syndrome (ABS), Congenital Diaphragmatic Hernia, EXIT Procedure, Fetal Cardiac Defects, Fetal Echocardiography

  • Andrew J. Satin, M.D.

    • Director of Gynecology and Obstetrics
    • Dorothy Edwards Professor of the Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics
    • Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Gynecology and Obstetrics, Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Multiple Gestations, Obstetrics

  • Jeanne Steinbronn Sheffield, M.D.

    • Director of the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine
    • Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: High Risk OB, HIV/AIDS, Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Multiple Gestations, Obstetrics

    Research Interests: Infectious diseases in pregnancy, maternal immunizations, medical and surgical complications in pregnancy

  • Julia Timofeev, M.D.

    • Assistant Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics

    Expertise: Gynecology, Gynecology and Obstetrics, High Risk OB, Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Obstetrics

  • Jason Vaught, M.D.

    • Director, Labor and Delivery
    • Director, Advanced Obstetric Surgery Center
    • Robert E. Meyerhoff Professor
    • Associate Professor of Gynecology and Obstetrics
    • Associate Professor of Surgery

    Expertise: Complex Obstetric Surgery, Critical Care Medicine, Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Obstetrics, Placenta Accreta Spectrum (PAS)