Christina Paidas Teefey, MD, on excitement of SMFM's 2026 meeting, and what's trending

The Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine’s 2026 Pregnancy Meeting is officially underway from the Caesars Forum in Las Vegas, Nevada, with countless oral abstracts and poster presentations scheduled to highlight the very latest in the space.¹

The meeting officially kicked off on February 8 and runs through Friday, February 13. Contemporary OB/GYN will be covering the meeting in multiple ways, including highlighting the latest study data, as well as speaking with the meeting’s experts and study investigators.²

In the video above, Christina Paidas Teefey, MD, a maternal-fetal medicine specialist at Nemours Children’s Institute for Maternal Fetal Health, is attending the meeting and shares with colleagues what she is most looking forward to in the 2026 chapter.

“SMFM always does an amazing job with their organization of the meeting,” Paidas Teefey said. “Pretty true to form, my full interests lie within the fetal therapy environment, but also my passion and subset, in addition to that, is the psychosocial aspects of the program.”

For Paidas Teefey, those two themes—technical innovation and family-centered support—are deeply intertwined. She highlighted the importance of infrastructure for psychosocial screening and support programs that are embedded within fetal centers, noting that these resources are essential for families navigating complex diagnoses and treatment decisions.

“So the fetal intervention and innovation piece of the meeting, as well as the psychosocial piece of the meeting, are my absolute favorites,” she said.

Twin and multiple gestations remain a major focus, particularly as data continue to evolve in the setting of monochorionic placentation. Paidas Teefey emphasized the value of staying current in an era where management strategies are rapidly changing.

“In the era of where we are right now in the world, having knowledge of multiples and just the kind of ever-existing fetal center piece of your go-to fetal center person that you can just give a call and say, ‘something looks a little funny—what do you think about this?’ or ‘what does the data say?’” she said.

She described the meeting as a space for collegial discussion, where specialists can collectively refine how and when to intervene—and when referral may not yet be necessary.

“It’s always nice to be in a collegial room with everybody, and having everybody discuss all of these pieces of multiples—twins, triplets, and so on—so that we can be on the forefront,” Paidas Teefey said. “That way, we can answer colleagues’ questions and also help bridge those conversations with families, including the psychosocial support conversation, because those are not easy times for a family.”

Emerging prenatal therapies are another area generating momentum at the meeting. Paidas Teefey pointed to conditions such as spinal muscular atrophy and cystic fibrosis as increasingly common topics of discussion, alongside advances in genetics and gene therapy.

“We’re all very excited about that,” she said, adding that prenatal screening for spinal muscular atrophy and early involvement of genetics specialists are critical components of care.

“More families are learning about these conditions early in pregnancy, and they want the information,” Paidas Teefey said. “We want them to have it so they can make informed decisions—whether that’s to screen, pursue further testing, or not.”

At its core, she said, the meeting reflects a shared commitment across the field. “It’s all a uniform goal of patient support and care.”

References:

1. Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine 2026 Pregnancy Meeting. SMFM.org. Accessed February 9, 2026. https://www.smfm.org/
2. Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine. Contemporary OB/GYN. Accessed February 9, 2026. https://www.contemporaryobgyn.net/conferences/smfm