Advances in Prediction, Prevention, and Management of Pregnancy and Childbirth Complications

Dear Colleagues,

Pregnancy and childbirth are physiological processes that may nevertheless be complicated by maternal, fetal, placental, and obstetric conditions associated with substantial morbidity and mortality. Despite major advances in prenatal diagnosis, fetal surveillance, obstetric care, and perinatal medicine, the early identification of pregnancies at risk and the timely implementation of effective preventive and therapeutic strategies remain important clinical challenges. These challenges are increasingly relevant in the context of rising maternal age, multiple pregnancies, maternal comorbidities, assisted reproductive technologies, and the growing complexity of obstetric care.

Contemporary risk assessment integrates maternal characteristics, medical and obstetric history, ultrasound findings, Doppler parameters, biochemical and genetic biomarkers, and emerging digital technologies. Translating these diagnostic advances into individualized clinical pathways may improve maternal and neonatal outcomes while avoiding unnecessary interventions. Multidisciplinary collaboration between obstetricians, maternal–fetal medicine specialists, neonatologists, geneticists, anesthesiologists, midwives, and other healthcare professionals is therefore essential.

This Special Issue aims to present and disseminate recent advances in the prediction, prevention, diagnosis, and clinical management of complications arising during pregnancy, childbirth, and the early postpartum period. We welcome original research articles, narrative reviews and clinical studies. Contributions addressing personalized care, innovative diagnostic methods, and preventive or therapeutic interventions are particularly encouraged.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The prediction and prevention of spontaneous preterm birth;
• The screening and management of pre-eclampsia and hypertensive disorders;
• Fetal growth restriction and placental dysfunction;
• Prenatal diagnosis, fetal surveillance, and Doppler ultrasound;
• Biomarkers and genetic testing in high-risk pregnancies;
• Multiple pregnancies and twin-related complications;
• Maternal medical disorders and pregnancy;
• Fetal therapy and multidisciplinary perinatal care;
• The prevention and management of intrapartum complications;
• Postpartum hemorrhage and maternal morbidity;
• Stillbirth prevention and perinatal mortality;
• Artificial intelligence, digital health, and individualized risk prediction;
• Quality improvement, patient safety, and the prevention of unnecessary obstetric interventions;
• Long-term maternal and offspring outcomes following complicated pregnancies.

We hope that this Special Issue will provide a clinically relevant and interdisciplinary overview of current developments and contribute to safer, more personalized, and evidence-based maternity care.

Prof. Dr. Ioannis Kyvernitakis
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-anonymized peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Journal of Clinical Medicine is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• preterm birth
• prevention
• high-risk pregnancy
• prediction
• fetal medicine
• fetal growth restriction
• twin pregnancy