Contemporary trends in utilization of pediatric cardiac imaging in children's hospitals.

Abstract

Background: There has been an increase in availability and utilization of cardiac CT (CCT) and magnetic resonance (CMR) imaging in pediatric cardiology. Understanding trends in their utilization can provide foundational data for defining appropriate use of these tests in pediatrics, and guide resource distribution enhance access to these modalities.

Methods: This retrospective observational study utilized data from the Pediatric Health Information Systems (PHIS) database, a clinical and billing database including 49 children's hospitals. Encounters between 2010 and 2023 that had a code for any cardiac imaging test (echocardiography, CCT, or CMR) were included. The proportion of encounters utilizing each cardiac imaging test per year was calculated, and the primary outcome was the change in this proportion.

Results: A total of 95,021,317 hospital-based encounters were queried, of which 1,442,094 had at least one of the 3 tests performed. The total number of encounters utilizing any cardiac imaging test increased over the study period. The proportion of encounters with echocardiography decreased (by 6.5 ​%) while those with CMR and CCT increased (70 ​% and 200 ​% respectively) over the study period. There was variation in imaging utilization by geographic region and diagnosis.

Conclusion: This study highlights a marked increase in CCT use in pediatric cardiac imaging, accompanied by regional disparities in utilization. The growing role of CCT underscores the need for tailored training programs for pediatric cardiologists and increased resource allocation to meet rising demand. Future research should explore the drivers of regional variation and investigate the impact of modality choice on patient outcomes and care efficiency.