The Seton Family of Hospitals has launched a new Web site called SetonBabyTalk.com and we at GoodHealth.com urge you to check it out. It's designed specifically for expecting families and parents of newborns who would prefer access to the opinions of local experts and forums featuring people within the Central Texas community. A recent nationwide survey indicated that two thirds of all pregnant women turn to the Internet for information, with almost 20 percent ranking it as their favorite source. They turn to Web sites, blogs and groups to allay their fears, find answers to their questions, make plans and even commiserate about the woes of morning sickness and swollen feet. Because Seton already is a leader in health education, prevention and wellness in Central Texas, it just seemed like a natural fit for this community.

"Pregnancy is not an illness or a disease. Although we believe strongly in the safety that having your baby in a hospital setting brings, most expectant mothers at Seton maternity centers are well individuals who will deliver well babies safely, then go home. SetonBabyTalk.com has something for expectant moms, new moms, older moms, dads and grandmas. We have a lot of knowledge and information within our maternity centers that we want to share," says Susan Crane, Vice President of Neonatal Services, who oversees all of the newborn nurseries within the Seton Family.

Like GoodHealth.com, SetonBabyTalk.com is unique because it's local. There are plenty of national pregnancy-related sites, but only SetonBabyTalk.com can put Central Texans in touch with experts they can actually contact and make an appointment to see. SetonBabyTalk.com also features special-interest forums and a Resource Center that helps you connect with advice and information from Seton and other community resources.

If you are looking for an area obstetrician to help manage your pregnancy or a pediatrician to care for your newborn, our convenient Find a Physician will help you reach a physician credentialed at one of the Seton Family's birthing centers close to your neighborhood. If you would like to see what the birthing centers look like, each one has a virtual tour on the SetonBabyTalk.com site.

SetonBabyTalk.com even has its own mom, an Austin resident named Melanie who delivered at Seton Medical Center Austin. She is in the process of experiencing everything baby and full of information about breast pumps, poopy diapers and what pregnancy, labor and childbirth are really like. Melanie writes a hilarious blog and she's the one you can talk to on Forums about every baby subject under the sun.

Contributing Experts

A truly unique part of SetonBabyTalk.com is access to local experts who can answer your questions about pregnancy, delivery, infant care and infant nutrition. Our panel is growing and currently includes two obstetricians, two pediatricians, three breastfeeding and lactation specialists, two labor and delivery nurses, a clinical dietitian and a hypnobirthing expert. All are either credentialed members of the Seton Family of Hospitals Medical Staff or licensed and credentialed clinical professionals. Among them, they can answer pretty much any question Central Texans throw at them.

The following are examples of questions posed to our experts and their answers:

Q: When I get hot enough to sweat my hands swell. I have high blood pressure as well which is why I am a little concerned. What might be the cause for this?

A: If you have pre-existing high blood pressure, i.e. chronic hypertension, and you are now pregnant, your physician should test each trimester for laboratory evidence of pre-eclampsia. These test may include some blood-work but most importantly a 24-hour urine collection to determine the amount of protein. Chronic hypertension with superimposed pre-eclampsia can be a dangerous combination. The symptom you mention -- hand swelling -- is only one of several that can occur with pre-eclampsia. Other symptoms include facial swelling, headaches, visual disturbances, right-sided upper abdominal pain and nausea and vomiting. Clinical signs such as those above, in addition to abnormal lab values, help your physician manage your pregnancy. The swelling is caused, in part, by damage to peripheral blood vessels, allowing fluid to leak out into the surrounding tissue. The damage can occur via elevated blood pressure as well as other endocrine factors. A diagnosis of pre-eclampsia at such an early gestational age is exceedingly rare, but exceedingly dangerous as well. Let you doctor's office know a.s.a.p. about your symptoms.

Answered by: Matthew Romberg, MD, Ob/Gyn, Heart of Texas Womens Center.

Q: How can I make sure my baby is receiving the proper nutrition if I'm unable to breastfeed?

A: If you are unable to breastfeed, infant formula is available. There is little difference between different infant formulas nutritionally thanks to FDA regulations. Although most infant formulas supply adequate nutrition for growth similar to human milk, human milk is superior to formula in that it provides protection against several infections, decreases the risk of obesity, decreases the risk of certain cancers and decreases the risk of several chronic diseases.

Answered by: Amy Brandes, RD, LD, CNSD, IBCLC, Manager of Neonatal Nutrition & Lactation Services, Seton Family of Hospitals

Q: What types of protein and how much of it should I be feeding my 10-month old?

A: Because of their dramatic growth during the first year (usually 3 fold increase in weight and 50% increase in height), babies require more protein per unit of body weight than adults. A 10 month old baby requires about 11-14 grams of protein per day. During the first 4-6 months of life, babies receive all of their protein from breast milk or formula. As your child eats more solid foods and then graduates to table foods (around 9 months), their intake of liquids decrease. Baby foods such as meats, beans, tofu are good sources of protein.

Answered by: Kelly Thorstad, MD, FAAP, Pediatrics, Lone Star Pediatrics.

Birthing Safety

The Seton Family of Hospitals has received national recognition for advances in birthing safety that sets the standard of care for moms and their newborns. Although birth trauma or injury to a baby during the birthing process is infrequent, it is emotionally devastating to families of affected children. Seton's best practice protocols were awarded the Ernest Amory Codman Award for developing and implementing transformational practices in labor and delivery aimed at reducing the rate of birth trauma.

Just this year, Child Birth Connections, a national not-for-profit organization working to improve the quality of maternity care, gave Seton it's first ever Maternity Quality Matters award for demonstrating excellence in maternity care.

Birthing safety is also an important part of the Seton High Risk Maternal Referral Program. For a small percentage of patients who know in advance they will have difficulties with their pregnancies and deliveries and for those for whom something goes wrong, advanced inpatient care is available at Seton Medical Center Austin and University Medical Center Brackenridge. Obstetricians experienced in high risk births and maternal-fetal medicine specialists practice at both hospitals to help manage high risk complications such as premature rupture of membranes, premature labor and pre-eclampsia. Babies born prematurely or with complex medical problems are cared for in one of Seton's three Level Three neonatal intensive care units and have access to the services of advanced pediatric specialists at Dell Children's Medical Center of Central Texas.

Although high risk births will not be the subject of most of the questions or comments on SetonBabyTalk.com, there is a High Risk forum section that let's moms talk about having multiple babies and the risks and concerns of those with complicating conditions such as heart disease, diabetes and endometriosis.

Visit SetonBabyTalk.com

Seton GoodHealth.com welcomes SetonBabyTalk.com to our family of health education, prevention and wellness Web sites. We invite you to try SetonBabyTalk.com for interesting, informative information about pregnancy, birth and infant care with a distinctive Central Texas flavor.

Seton Family Women and Maternity Services Locations

You can also find out more about Women's and Maternity Services on our clinical Web site Seton.net or on the location pages of service locations:

• University Medical Center Brackenridge
• Seton Medical Center Austin
• Seton Northwest Hospital
• Seton Southwest Hospital
• Seton Medical Center Williamson