Fetal cardiology is an advanced field focusing on the care of the fetal heart with the aim of improving outcomes of heart problems in children. Under the leadership of Cardiology Chief Jeffrey A. Towbin, MD, the Heart Institute at Le Bonheur is consistently recognized as one of the best centers in the country for pediatric cardiovascular care. As an integral part of the Heart Institute, the fetal cardiology program shares the same vision and has grown significantly. The fetal cardiology program at Le Bonheur is the only program within 200-mile radius of Memphis.
The fetal cardiology program manages heart structure and rhythm problems of the fetus with the primary goal to provide excellent care to you and your baby. Our program provides comprehensive fetal cardiac care including expert diagnosis, explanation and counseling, management during pregnancy, delivery planning and smooth transition of care to pediatric cardiology after birth while also providing emotional and spiritual support to the families.
A Multidisciplinary Approach
To ensure comprehensive care of the mother and baby, we have close collaboration with multiple subspecialties including obstetrics and maternal fetal medicine, neonatology, genetics, pediatric cardiothoracic surgery, pediatric surgery and palliative care. The fetal cardiology team works closely with maternal fetal medicine to make a delivery plan.
Please call at 901-287-7159 to schedule your appointment.
Your Visit
The Fetal Cardiology Clinic is located at the second floor of Le Bonheur Outpatient Building at 51 N. Dunlap Avenue, Memphis, TN 38103. Please expect the clinic visit time to be at least 90 minutes. Plan to arrive at least 15 minutes prior to your clinic visit to complete registration and paperwork.
After the nurse triage, you will be directed towards an echocardiography room. You will be asked to lie down comfortably while fetal echocardiogram is performed. During the procedure if you are uncomfortable or need to change position or go to the restroom, please let the sonographer know. After the completion of fetal echocardiogram, a fetal cardiologist will review the images and discuss with you in detail the fetal heart condition and management plan. If other subspecialties need to be involved it will be coordinated via maternal fetal medicine services.
The fetal cardiology team then reaches out to your primary obstestrics physician and/or referring maternal fetal medicine physician to coordinate future obstetrics and fetal cardiology visits and to plan the delivery. Our primary goal is to provide excellent care for you and your baby from pregnancy to birth.
Fetal Cardiology Location
Fetal Cardiology Clinic
Le Bonheur Outpatient Building
Second Floor
51 N. Dunlap Avenue
Memphis, TN 38103
To schedule an appointment, call 901-287-7159.
Fetal Cardiology: What is it? Why is it important?
Children can have variety of heart problems, most of which are present since birth due to developmental defects of the heart. Many of these problems can be corrected either fully or partially using variety of interventional techniques after birth.
The outcomes of such defects have improved drastically over last 20-30 years with improvement in diagnosis and treatment strategies. The field of pediatric cardiology, which deals with heart problems in children after birth, has thus advanced tremendously in last decade. Not only do these children need expert diagnosis and treatment, but their families are also in a constant need of support, education, and help.
Click here to learn more on our Practical Parenting Blog.
For Referring Providers
Learn more about when to refer to Fetal Cardiology or for a fetal echo by visiting our provider clinical care resources.
Meet Our Fetal Cardiology Team
Dr. Naik is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics with a cardiology subspecialty, is the director of the fetal cardiology program and is an associate professor of Pediatrics at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. Dr. Naik completed his Pediatric Cardiology fellowship at the Penn State Hershey Children's Hospital and his Advanced Imaging in Cardiac MRI (cMRI) in the Heart Institute at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital. He specializes in non-invasive imaging including cMRI, fetal echocardiography, advanced echocardiography and stress echocardiography. Dr. Naik is a member of the Society of Cardiovascular Magnetic Resonance, Fetal Heart Society, American Society of Echocardiography and the American College of Cardiology.
Dr. Joshi is medical director of Noninvasive Cardiology in the Heart Institute at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital and a professor at the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. He is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics with a cardiology subspecialty and specializes in fetal cardiac imaging, echocardiography and sports-related cardiology.
Dr. Johnson is the associate chief of Cardiology in the Heart Institute at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital and is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics with a cardiology subspecialty. He is an associate professor with the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. His areas of focus are non-invasive imaging including advanced echocardiography, fetal cardiology and cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (cMRI). Dr. Johnson is also the director of the cMRI program at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital and St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.
Dr. Swaminathan is an associate professor with the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She is a member of the Heart Institute at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital with expertise in general pediatric cardiology and non-invasive imaging and specializes in fetal echocardiography. Dr. Swaminathan is the associate program director of the Pediatric Cardiology Fellowship for the Heart Institute at Le Bonheur Children's Hospital and the University of Tennessee Health Science Center. She is certified by the American Board of Pediatrics with a cardiology subspecialty. Prior to joining the Heart Institute faculty, Dr. Swaminathan completed her Pediatric Cardiology fellowship at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital of New York-Presbyterian, Columbia University Medical Center in New York. She is member of the American Society of Echocardiography, Fetal Heart Society, American Academy of Pediatrics and Association of Pediatric Program Directors.
Fetal Cardiology Clinic Staff
Sonographers
Huma Abulmajeed
Angela Morelli
Fetal Clinic Coordinator/Nurse
Cynthia Dorian
Crystal Thomas
