Diabetes in pregnancy
SMFM revises its antepartum checklist for pregestational diabetes
What changed: SMFM published a revised 2026 checklist for antepartum care of patients with type 1 or type 2 diabetes, replacing the 2020 version.
Why it matters: A checklist is useful because diabetes care spans glycemic control, maternal comorbidities, fetal evaluation, surveillance, and delivery planning. A revised society checklist is a good trigger to compare local protocols with current recommendations.
Clinical takeaway: Review your office or hospital diabetes pathway against the revised SMFM checklist rather than continuing to rely on the 2020 version.
Twins
Updated SMFM checklists for monochorionic twin pregnancy
What changed: SMFM released updated checklists for monochorionic diamniotic and monochorionic monoamniotic pregnancies, replacing its 2020 checklists.
Why it matters: Monochorionic twins require surveillance that differs substantially from routine singleton and dichorionic twin care. A checklist update is an opportunity to verify timing, Doppler use, complication surveillance, and local referral pathways.
Clinical takeaway: Compare your MCDA and MCMA protocols with the new checklist and update standing ultrasound or referral workflows where needed.
Hypertension / prevention
SMFM updates aspirin risk-factor screening checklist
What changed: SMFM published an updated checklist for preeclampsia risk-factor screening to guide prophylactic low-dose aspirin recommendations, replacing its 2020 checklist.
Why it matters: Aspirin works only if eligible patients are recognized and treatment is started. A structured checklist reduces the chance that risk factors are missed during intake or early prenatal care.
Clinical takeaway: Consider placing the updated risk-factor checklist in the first prenatal visit workflow rather than relying on memory alone.
Antibiotic stewardship
SMFM addresses reported penicillin allergy in pregnancy
What is new: SMFM published a 2026 statement describing how obstetric practices can assess reported penicillin allergy and develop pregnancy-safe testing programs.
Why it matters: Many patients who report penicillin allergy can actually tolerate beta-lactam antibiotics. Clarifying allergy status can improve access to preferred antibiotics and reduce use of less effective alternatives.
Clinical takeaway: This is less about a single bedside decision and more about building a better prenatal workflow: identify reported allergy early and create a pathway for appropriate evaluation.
Preeclampsia research
Machine-learning study explores distinct preeclampsia phenotypes
What the study did: A prospective cohort study published in the September 2026 issue of BJOG used unsupervised machine learning to explore clinically distinct preeclampsia phenotypes.
Why it matters: Preeclampsia is clinically heterogeneous. Better phenotyping may eventually improve prediction, prognosis, or treatment selection, but clustering studies require validation before they become bedside management tools.
Clinical takeaway: Interesting mechanistic and risk-stratification research, but not a reason to change current diagnostic or delivery criteria today.
