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Pediatric minor head injury imaging practices: results from an ESPR survey

  • Paediatric Neuroradiology
  • Published:
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Abstract

Purpose

Computed tomography (CT) for minor head injury exposes a large number of children to ionizing radiation, with an associated increased lifetime risk of malignancy. To study imaging practices for children with minor head injury and the level of awareness of radiologists of the current clinical decision rules for minor traumatic brain injury (TBI).

Methods

A questionnaire consisting of 17 questions was distributed electronically to 472 ESPR members. The questionnaire covered demographic information, employment status, years of experience and the current practice setting of the participants, the number of CTs performed for pediatric head trauma, awareness of clinical decision rules and use of shielding, pediatric CT protocol and MRI.

Results

The response rate was 18.4%. The majority of participants was aged over 50 years and was full-time consultants. Regarding decision rules, 73.8% of respondents cited the NICE head injury guidelines, and 79% reported that the decision to perform CT was agreed between specialists. Shielding was used by 58.3% and 67.4% applied a specific pediatric protocol. MRI was not used for pediatric head trauma by 70.6% of respondents, although always available in 68.6% of cases. The reported obstacles to MRI use were machine availability (42.7%), the long acquisition time (39%) and patients’ intolerance (18.3%), and less frequently the cost and the need for sedation.

Conclusion

There is room for decreasing the use of CT for pediatric minor TBI. The use of shielding and application of pediatric CT protocols constitute areas for improvement.

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Funding

No funding was received for this study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Radiology, Medical School, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece

    Maria I. Argyropoulou & Vassileios G. Xydis

  2. Department of Neurosurgery, Medical School, University of Ioannina, 455 00, Ioannina, Greece

    George A. Alexiou

  3. Faculty of Medicine and AP-HP, Bicêtre Hospital, Pediatric Radiology Department, Paris-Sud University, Paris, France

    Catherine Adamsbaum

  4. Univ. Bordeaux, CRMSB UMR 5536, 33076, Bordeaux, France

    Jean-Francois Chateil

  5. Neuroradiology Unit, IRCCS Istituto Giannina Gaslini, Genoa, Italy

    Andrea Rossi

  6. Aix*Marseille University UMR CNRS 7339, APHM Timone Hospital, Marseille, France

    Nadine Girard

  7. Department of Pediatric Radiology, Hospital Universitari Vall d’Hebron, Barcelona, Spain

    Élida Vázquez

  8. Department of Medical Physics, Medical School, University of Ioannina, Ioannina, Greece

    Loukas G. Astrakas

Authors
  1. Maria I. Argyropoulou
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  2. George A. Alexiou
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  3. Vassileios G. Xydis
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  4. Catherine Adamsbaum
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  5. Jean-Francois Chateil
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  6. Andrea Rossi
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  7. Nadine Girard
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  8. Élida Vázquez
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  9. Loukas G. Astrakas
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to George A. Alexiou.

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The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in the studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

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Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study.

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Argyropoulou, M.I., Alexiou, G.A., Xydis, V.G. et al. Pediatric minor head injury imaging practices: results from an ESPR survey. Neuroradiology 62, 251–255 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00234-019-02326-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00234-019-02326-6

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