Stefanie Riddle, MD

My own health issues as a young child drew me to a career in medicine. Today, my patient care and research interests focus on improving the postnatal care of babies with congenital anomalies.

As the neonatal director of Cincinnati Children’s Fetal Care Center, I work with my team to create a holistic medical home for the most complex and vulnerable mothers and infants. We aim to be the preeminent fetal center in the country.

I believe that excellent medical care provided in childhood can create a lifetime of change. I learned this in medical school, and it’s why I became a pediatrician. I pursued neonatology because it’s clear to me that exceptional care can begin from the minute of birth.

As a fellow, I focused on understanding complications related to prematurity after fetal myelomeningocele repair. I also performed a cost-analysis comparing the fetal repair strategy to traditional postnatal management.

I now study ways to optimize care and improve health outcomes for infants with renal and genitourinary conditions that lead to abnormal amniotic fluid volumes. These babies are at high risk for pulmonary hypoplasia and early renal failure. I work with a team to better describe the best care for these patients and to improve prenatal counseling for families.

I am honored to serve as co-leader of the Children's Hospital Neonatal Consortium Gastroschisis Focus Group. This organization benchmarks best practices for patients with gastroschisis in NICUs across the country.

When I’m not at work, I enjoy spending time with my family.