Decline in U.S. Pediatric Radiologists from 2016 to 2023

Between 2016 and 2023, there has been a noticeable decrease in the number of pediatric radiologists practicing in the United States. According to a recent study published in the Journal of the American College of Radiology, researchers analyzed private payer claims data to track radiology services billed by radiologists, focusing on pediatric-specific work. They used work relative value units (wRVUs) to accurately identify the proportion of pediatric-focused radiologists over the years.

The study found that only about 8.4% of the 109,077 radiologists surveyed met the threshold of dedicating at least 50% of their work to pediatric radiology. The count of unique pediatric radiologists declined from 2,190 in 2016 to 2,032 in 2023, with their share dropping from 6.4% to 4.6% of the total radiology workforce. When using broader criteria (25% or 75% pediatric work thresholds), the numbers ranged from 12.4% to 6.8% throughout the study period.

Importantly, the analysis revealed that the median contribution of pediatric radiology work to non-pediatric radiologists remained below 0%, indicating a very limited focus on pediatrics within general radiology practices. Co-author Casey Pelzl emphasized that despite the overall growth of radiology professionals, the specialized pediatric subset has diminished, raising concerns about access to expert care for children.

These findings highlight the need for increased focus on pediatric radiology specialty training and workforce planning to ensure that children's diagnostic imaging needs are adequately met in the future.

For more details, the study titled "Defining the Pediatric Radiology Workforce in the United States Using Insurance Claims Data" is available in the Journal of the American College of Radiology (2025).