I am new in this forum and I just found out weeks ago that I am carrying triplets. I am on my 11th week right now and doing extensive research. I am torned between 2 Perinats, one is Dr. John Elliott and another is Dr. Khalil Tabsh. If you know them or have used them on your pregnancies, please do let me know your experiences with them. I am also scheduled for a CVS with Dr. John Williams III in Cedars Sinai and im absolutely scared about the effects of the procedure. If anyone have tried him, please do let me know how it goes

Thank you

Dr. John Elliott is renowned for his work with multiples. Many on this board can attest to this. I live in NY and would have loved to have had him as my doctor.

Maggie & the 3 bears
bbb
10-23-2000
34w
a 5lbs 5 Killian Xavier
b 4lbs 6 Christian Emmanuel
c 4lbs 1.5 Daniel Louis

Congratulations on your pregnancy. I had a CVS, but if I had to choose again, I'd opt not to do it unless there is a very compelling genetic or medical reason to do so.

Both my husband and I are older, our embryos were very poor quality, etc. We wouldn't have reduced anyway, but I wanted to be as prepared as I could. As it turned out, one of our babies was lying so far back that the needle wasn't long enough to adequately reach her CV. They managed to get a sample, and even though the lab tried, there wasn't enough of a sample to culture in the end.

Reaching Baby A cervically was no problem and not painful at all. I barely felt it (faster and easier than a Pap Smear). Reaching Baby B abdominally was uncomfortable, but it was over before I knew it and really no big deal. Reaching Baby C was a painful ordeal I never want to relive again.

If your babies are lying in a way that they can easily be reached, I'd say go for it. Otherwise, I'd hesitate. It really just depends on the babies' position and which route they take to access the CV. Good luck!

GGG born Oct. '09 at 32w6d
http://ginnegaap.blogspot.com

As previously mentioned Dr. Elliott is famous for his work with high order multiples. I was under the impression that Dr. Elliott is in Saddleback in Orange County. I believe the practice group at Saddleback is trying to become preeminent in their work with high order multiples (though the doctors I wanted were not taking new patients when I was pregnant with my kids) so I went with another doctor at another hospital.

I gave birth at Cedars Sinai with my older boy. Cedars is a teaching hospital so be prepared to have a ton of people at your delivery and have interns working with you which really annoyed and scared me because of the mistakes they made--they were minor but when you're about to have a baby nothing is minor at that moment.

Dr. Tabsh delivered my triplets five years ago, yesterday. He is the most incredible doctor I have ever met!! He is available 24 hours a day and practically lives at UCLA. I always felt comfortable asking her every single little question I had. I remember he went on vacation for a week and I just so happened to have to go in to the hospital(too many contractions). I was really worried that he was not there. Five minutes after I arrived, he walked through the door! He explained to me that when he has a vacation he just doesn't see patients in his office. I HIGHLY recommend him!

~Jonna
Sofia 9
Thomas 5
Emelia 5
Rita 5

Dr Elliot is famous in the world of multiples but I believe he is OC. Best of luck in your decision, we are in just north of LA in Simi Valley, I had an amazing dr but he is at Los Robles in TO. Def check into ur local multiples group and Aflac

BBG 6/21/06

Thanks everyone for the replies! Although, Dr. Elliott is about an hour away from us, I think its worth the drive. I didnt proceed with the CVS mainly because my husband I decided not to do an SR.

Something to consider....Once you are farther along, riding in a car and sitting will become MUCH more uncomfortable. I had an hour drive to my peri, was on bedrest the last six weeks, and sitting in the car for 2 hrs in addition to the waiting room time, was downright painful. That said, my doctors were great, but if a closer option had been available, I would have taken it.

Good Luck!

Felicia
Mom to....
Sheridan (5),
Morgan, Savanna, and Catelyn (2.5)

I agree with the OP. The stress of driving an hour away might out weight the benefits of seeing Dr. Elliott. I remember being given a 2-hour pass when I was on bedrest. I sat in the car to L.A. for under an hour. The next day, I had heavy bleeding that landed me on strict bedrest with no showers. The pressure on the cervix sitting down is the same as standing up.

Also, in the scenario that your kids will need to stay in the NICU, consider the distance from your house to the NICU, doing the drive, or worse when you have one or two children at home, and still one at the NICU.

Also, from what I was told the NICU at Saddleback where Dr. Elliott is, closes their doors a couple of times a day when doctors do their rounds. I thought considering how tight my schedule was at the time the kids were in the NICU what a pain in the rear that would have been. But this is second hand information but you might want to check on it.

Good luck in trying to reach a decision. Its so tough trying to find a doctor and hospital that you can trust with your babies and with your well-being.

Hi there, Dr. Elliott cared for me during my pregnancy. I could not think more highly of him. He was clear and sincere with me as far as the risks and seriousness of the pregnancy, but always hopeful, very approachable. He has experience with over 500 triplet pregnancies and relies on the most recent data available to help make decisions about your care. He volunteered to see me consistently (even though his practice at the time usually rotated you among various physicians). I was very fortunate to carry my babies to 35 weeks after a cerclage and medication therapy for a positive fetal fibronectin test. He is a fan of bed rest and home monitoring. The night that my water broke (2 days before my scheduled c section), the doctor on call called him to let him know I was going to deliver. She came in carrying her iphone and said, "It's Dr. Elliott. He wants to know if you'd like him to come in to do the delivery." Music to my ears. He met my parents in the waiting room wearing a Jimmy Buffet shirt (we're big fans). I will never forget that he drove in for us. Having him there to take me right to the end brought the experience full circle. I can't recommend him highly enough.

That said - being on bedrest with triplets is extremely tough, and my drive was only about twenty minutes. Towards the end, you'll probably have to go in three times a week. On the other hand, you could also be living in the hospital without any drive at all. I do think the other posters comments about the drive are worth considering. Best of luck to you! You'll do great! 36 weeks and 5 lbs each!

-S

Hi there, and congrats on your pregnancy! I really wanted to reach out to you because we just found out we are having triplets as well and live in Los Angeles (due in October, but probably delivery sooner). I go to Dr. Tabsh and wouldn't see anyone else for a triplet pregnancy, but it seems Dr. Elliott is highly respected as well. I have done a ton of research on Dr. Tabsh and feel he is the best fit for us as he has delivered hundreds and hundreds of triplets (plus) and is known to save babies others can’t. We also visited the NICU at UCLA Santa Monica (where we have decided to deliver) and they specialize in premature births, which is most likely where we will want our expertise in a NICU to be concentrated. We actually live in Playa Del Rey, so Santa Monica is very close as is Westwood (where I see Tabsh). We should keep in touch and try to support each other through this craziness since it seems like we are at about the same point. I am 14 ½ weeks.