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Paediatric radiology seen from Africa. Part I: providing diagnostic imaging to a young population

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Abstract

Paediatric radiology requires dedicated equipment, specific precautions related to ionising radiation, and specialist knowledge. Developing countries face difficulties in providing adequate imaging services for children. In many African countries, children represent an increasing proportion of the population, and additional challenges follow from extreme living conditions, poverty, lack of parental care, and exposure to tuberculosis, HIV, pneumonia, diarrhoea and violent trauma. Imaging plays a critical role in the treatment of these children, but is expensive and difficult to provide. The World Health Organisation initiatives, of which the World Health Imaging System for Radiography (WHIS-RAD) unit is one result, needs to expand into other areas such as the provision of maintenance servicing. New initiatives by groups such as Rotary and the World Health Imaging Alliance to install WHIS-RAD units in developing countries and provide digital solutions, need support. Paediatric radiologists are needed to offer their services for reporting, consultation and quality assurance for free by way of teleradiology. Societies for paediatric radiology are needed to focus on providing a volunteer teleradiology reporting group, information on child safety for basic imaging, guidelines for investigations specific to the disease spectrum, and solutions for optimising imaging in children.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Radiology Department, University of Witwatersrand, York Rd Parktown, Johannesburg Gauteng, 2193, South Africa

    Savvas Andronikou & Victor Mngomezulu

  2. Radiology Department, Great Ormond Street Hospital for Children, London, UK

    Kieran McHugh

  3. Radiology Department, University of Cape Town, Cape Town, South Africa

    Nuraan Abdurahman & Bryan Khoury

  4. Radiology Department, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA

    William E. Brant

  5. Radiology Department, Christchurch Hospital, Christchurch, New Zealand

    Ian Cowan

  6. Evelyna Children’s Hospital, London, UK

    Mignon McCulloch

  7. Public Health/Access, Médecins Sans Frontières, Cape Town, South Africa

    Nathan Ford

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  1. Savvas Andronikou
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  2. Kieran McHugh
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  3. Nuraan Abdurahman
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  4. Bryan Khoury
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  5. Victor Mngomezulu
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Correspondence to Savvas Andronikou.

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Andronikou, S., McHugh, K., Abdurahman, N. et al. Paediatric radiology seen from Africa. Part I: providing diagnostic imaging to a young population. Pediatr Radiol 41, 811–825 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00247-011-2081-8

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00247-011-2081-8

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