Pediatric radiologists specialize in interpreting scans of the body for children, and work with other specialists to determine appropriate diagnostic tests. They typically work in hospitals and have completed a three-year internship in radiology and a subspecialty fellowship in pediatric radiology. They do not determine treatment or prognosis but describe, diagnose, and explain what is being viewed. Consultation with a pediatric radiologist may not always be necessary, but can be useful for complex diseases.
A pediatric radiologist is a doctor who specializes in learning how to perform and interpret the various scans of the body, such as x-rays, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and computed tomography (CT). These doctors tend to work primarily with children rather than the adult population. People who are technicians and work on these machines are sometimes referred to as radiologists or radiologist technicians or technologists, but typically the term applies to people with a medical background who have a lot more ability to do more than run multiple scans. Rather, they interpret them and make diagnoses from them as they direct the work of technicians or technologists.
As with any medical profession, people who want to become a pediatric radiologist must first complete four years of college and then medical school. After becoming licensed physicians, physicians can choose to specialize. A typical path to pediatric radiology is to complete a three-year internship in radiology and then complete a year or longer subspecialty fellowship in pediatric radiology.
This specialty is different from other pediatric specialties, in that people who complete three years of a pediatrics residency and then a second residency are approximately the same length. Instead, the total training time after medical school can be around four years. It may take longer if doctors choose to specialize in additional areas.
The pediatric radiologist can choose from a variety of work settings. Some of these physicians maintain private practices, but most work in or with hospitals that have access to the expensive scanning equipment regularly employed in diagnostic radiology. Many physicians are more attracted to work in hospitals with strong pediatric departments of an advanced nature, where the pediatric population treated may have complex illnesses treated by radiology and other specialties.
In the chosen work setting, a pediatric radiologist works with other specialists to determine which diagnostic tests are appropriate. As mentioned, most often technicians or technologists perform scans, but radiologists are on hand to troubleshoot any problems during a scan and interpret the results. Information about what a scan reveals can then be communicated directly to the patient’s parents or treating physician. Radiologists do not tend to determine treatment or prognosis based on the scans, but they do describe, diagnose, and fully explain what is being viewed by parents or physicians. They can also determine when other visualization techniques may be needed to better make the diagnosis.
It is not always necessary to consult a pediatric radiologist for radiology examinations. A plain x-ray can be taken by a technician and evaluated only by a physician trained in radiology. The specialty may be more useful when there are complex diseases or a higher level of pediatric radiology will be required to arrive at a proper diagnosis. People who think their children might benefit from working with a physician in this subspecialty should look to teaching hospitals, children’s hospitals, and most teaching hospitals as places to find pediatric radiologists.
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