Dear Pediatric Imaging Insider,
In an era when nonradiologists increasingly perform and interpret diagnostic imaging procedures, it's refreshing to read a study by physicians acknowledging the necessity of radiology expertise.
This was the opinion reached by critical care physicians at Georgetown University Children's Medical Center after comparing 15 months of chest radiograph interpretations made both by pediatric intensive care physicians and radiologists. Published online ahead of print in the Journal of Critical Care, this study is the subject of this edition's Insider Exclusive.
But job security, at least, isn't an issue for those in pediatric radiology: There's been a shortage of radiology residents picking the discipline as a subspecialty. As part of an ongoing effort to recruit radiology residents, the Society for Pediatric Radiology of Reston, VA, conducted a national survey of radiology residents. What motivates this new generation of radiologists may not be what you expect. Click here to learn more.
One motivation that many residents cited as affecting their choice of subspecialty is diversity -- the opportunity to read many types of exams from state-of-the-art modalities and to use advanced visualization tools. As the following stories in your Pediatric Imaging Digital Community demonstrate, pediatric radiology offers a wide range of diversity and innovation.
Associate editor Wayne Forrest describes a new 3D cardiac MRI tool being used to help preplan pediatric surgery at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. He also reports how FDG-PET and scintigraphy are both being used to identify neuroblastoma in children.
And radiologists at Children's Hospital Boston are using pulmonary CT angiography to find more diagnoses in children when pulmonary embolism is ruled out. Are you using this procedure to its potential? Click here to find out.
We hope that residents and other readers of this newsletter who want diversity and challenge in their professional work will consider joining this understaffed specialty. After all, the kids need you!
