PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT DURING PEDIATRIC IMA GING PROCEDURES

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the attitude of French pedia tric radiologists regarding the presence or absence of parents during pediatric imaging of their child. A mail survey was sent to the French members of the a ''Societe Francophone de Radiologie Pediatrique''. W e asked about the inclusion of parents during pediatric imaging proced ures. They gave the reasons for their choice and stated if parental pr esence was helpful or not for the achievement of imaging procedures. R esponses were received from 76% of those surveyed. Excluding vascular and interventionnal procedures, few respondents (13%) permit parents t o be present for all types of examinations. One respondent excluded pa rents from every procedure. Others excluded parents from selected stud ies : plain films (18%), upper gastrointestinal series (33%), contrast enema (44%), retrograde (47%) and suprapubic (67%) voiding cystoureth rography, intra-venous pyelography (45%), US (5%), CT (27%), MRI (25%) . Regarding angiography, only 2% of the respondents allow parental pre sence. Every respondent performing interventional procedures did not a ccept parents in the interventional suite. When parents were present, they were close to their child (76%) and could help in his immobilizat ion (47%). Most of the respondents (49%) thought parental presence to affect examination in a favorable way. The opposite opinion was suppor ted by 25% of them. An equivocal response was given in 26% of the answ ers. Numerous reasons supported these responses, they could be classif ied according to the child and his illness, the parents, the radiologi st and his team, the examination performed. Most pediatric radiologist s in France allow parents to accompany their children during selected examinations. Radiologists vary in their perception of how parental pr esence affects the outcome of the pediatric imaging procedures.