Female doctor with newborn baby in hospital room

Sometimes the smallest patients face the biggest challenges. At Comer Children’s Hospital, our expert neonatologists can provide your baby with the most advanced newborn care in our neonatal intensive care unit (NICU). We provide level IV neonatal care, the highest level according to the American Academy of Pediatrics’ standards.

But our care does not only begin and end in the NICU. Our extensive team of specialists care for you and your family seamlessly: from the time that a high-risk pregnancy or complex fetal condition is diagnosed during pregnancy, continuing through delivery, admission to the NICU and following your child until they reach kindergarten.

Meet our Neonatologists 

Neonatology and Newborn Care Services

Comer Children’s offers the full range of prenatal, newborn care and post-NICU services to support you and your baby.

Support for Babies with Complex Fetal Conditions

If you have a high-risk pregnancy or your baby has a complex fetal condition, we will quickly arrange for you to meet with a team of neonatologists, maternal-fetal medicine experts and pediatric specialists in our Fetal and Neonatal Care Center. Together, we will develop a specialized care plan for your pregnancy, delivery and postnatal care.

Call us at 1-844-UCFETAL (1-844-823-3825)

Neonatal Neurocritical Care Monitoring for Babies with Brain Conditions

If your newborn has a brain condition or injury, we offer specialized monitoring and treatments. Neurological conditions we treat include:

If needed, we offer therapeutic hypothermia to lower your baby’s body temperature to protect your baby’s brain.

Advanced Respiratory Care to Support Your Baby’s Breathing

Respiratory therapists at Comer Children’s provide expert care for newborns who require oxygen therapy or ventilators to support their breathing. Whenever possible, we provide gentler, state-of-the-art administration techniques, including minimally invasive ventilation and minimally invasive surfactant therapy.

Pulmonary Hypertension Management, including Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO)

Your baby may require ECMO, a form of heart-lung bypass, if they have a serious heart or lung condition. An ECMO machine is used to pump blood through the body, adding oxygen and removing carbon dioxide when the heart or the lungs are not working correctly. At Comer Children’s, ECMO specialists are available around the clock. The Extracorporeal Life Support Organization (ELSO) has recognized our pediatric ECMO program with a Gold Level ELSO Award for Excellence in Life Support.

Genetic Counseling

Our team in the Fetal and Neonatal Care Center includes licensed genetic counselors who can help explain genetic conditions and the plan of care during your pregnancy and after you deliver. They will also coordinate your care with other members of the Fetal and Neonatal Care Center team and other providers when needed.

Emotional Support for the Entire Family

We aim to provide your family with more than exceptional medical care. We also offer compassionate support for parents and siblings, tailored to your family’s unique needs.

Nutritional Support for Preemies and Other Babies

Your newborn may need specialized nutritional care if they are premature or are born with special health challenges. Our neonatal nutrition specialists develop personalized nutrition plans to help optimize your baby’s health and development. Options available include lactation support, donor human milk, specialized formulas, intravenous feedings (total parenteral nutrition, or TPN) and tube feedings.

Continued Follow-Up for the First Five Years of Your Child’s Life

Babies born prematurely or with special challenges need extra monitoring and support during their first years of life. Our team continues to coordinate your child’s care during these critical years.

Our unique Center for Healthy Families provides personalized treatment plans and follow-up care in an integrated primary care clinic rather than a standalone follow-up clinic. The pediatricians in this center have specialized expertise in the needs of children who were born premature or with other challenges at birth. When needed, we coordinate visits with pediatric subspecialists and provide ongoing support if your baby is readmitted. Our clinic can be reached at 1-773-702-0606.

Perinatal Counseling and Support

If your baby is less than 35 weeks gestation at birth, our compassionate perinatal counseling team will meet with you to let you know what to expect during a possible NICU stay. We will take time to answer your questions and help you make informed decisions about your baby’s care.

Why Choose the University of Chicago Medicine for a Complex Pregnancy and Neonatology Care?

 Nurse monitoring a premature newborn in an incubator while wearing a face mask

Meet Our Neonatologists

In addition to providing specialized care for patients and families, our experts lead innovative research and education initiatives in the Section of Neonatology