Non-Children's Hospitals More Commonly Use Imaging Exposing Children to Ionizing Radiation

FRIDAY, Jan. 30, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- Imaging modalities that expose children to ionizing radiation are used more frequently at non-children's hospitals compared with children's hospitals, according to a study published online Jan. 20 in the Journal of the American College of Radiology.Casey E. Pelzl, M.P.H., from the Harvey L. Neiman Health Policy Institute in Reston, Virginia, and colleagues compared imaging use on pediatric outpatients at children's hospitals versus non-children's hospitals to identify differences across modalities with varying ionizing radiation exposure. The analysis included data from CMS Medicaid Research Identifiable Files to identify 2018 to 2019 pediatric (ages 0 to 17 years) outpatient claims (approximately 5.5 million) from hospital outpatient facilities and emergency departments.The researchers found that more than half of visits (53 percent) were to children's hospitals and 15 percent were to emergency departments. Children's hospital encounters were more likely for patients aged 0 to 5 years versus older than 5 years (41.2 versus 38.7 percent), those with a pediatric comorbidity index >2 (32.3 versus 22.9 percent), and those seen at hospital outpatient facilities (87.8 versus 81.9 percent). The most commonly used modalities were radiography (9.5 percent) and ultrasound (2.1 percent). At non-children's hospitals, the use of radiography (11.8 versus 7.5 percent) and computed tomography (CT; 1.0 versus 0.5 percent) was more frequent, while use of ultrasound (2.5 versus 1.7 percent) and magnetic resonance imaging (0.9 versus 0.5 percent) was more frequent at children's hospitals."The higher use of CT among pediatric patients at non-children's hospitals has significant implications," coauthor Andrea Doria, M.D., from the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, said in a statement. "These findings underscore the importance of pediatric‑specific protocols and the need for international collaboration to promote safer imaging practices."Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required).Sign up for our weekly HealthDay newsletter

Non-Children's Hospitals More Commonly Use Imaging Exposing Children to Ionizing Radiation

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