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E. Scott Pretorius, MD

Radiology oRganizations

1. What is the Radiological Society of North America (RSNA)?

The mission of the RSNA, founded 1915, is “to promote and develop the highest standards of radiology and related

sciences through education and research.” The RSNA is the world’s largest organization of its kind. The RSNA publishes

the “gray journal,” Radiology. The annual meeting of the RSNA is in Chicago during the last week of November or first

week of December.

2. What is the American Roentgen Ray Society (ARRS)?

The ARRS was founded in 1900, shortly after Roentgen’s discovery of the x-ray, with the stated goal of “advancement of

medicine through the science of radiology and its allied sciences.” The ARRS publishes the “yellow journal,” the American

Journal of Roentgenology, which has officially shortened its name to AJR. The ARRS meets annually in April or May at

varying sites throughout the United States and Canada.

3. What is the Association of University Radiologists (AUR)?

The AUR is the organization of academic radiologists. Subgroups of the AUR include the Society of Chairmen of Academic

Radiology Departments, the Association of Program Directors in Radiology, and the American Association of Academic

Chief Residents in Radiology. The AUR and its constituent organizations meet annually at varying sites throughout the

United States and Canada. It publishes the journal Academic Radiology.

4. What is the American Board of Radiology?

The American Board of Radiology, based in Tucson, Arizona, is the organization that administers the written and oral

examinations in radiology. The diagnostic radiology written examination is given each September at sites throughout

the United States and Canada. The diagnostic radiology oral examination is given annually in early June in Louisville,

Kentucky.

5. What is the American College of Radiology (ACR)?

The ACR performs several important functions. It accredits sites that perform mammography, ultrasound (US), nuclear

medicine, and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to maintain appropriate quality standards. Through its American

College of Radiology Imaging Network (ACRIN), the ACR conducts multicenter studies in diagnostic radiology. Educational

CD-ROMs in all subspecialties of radiology are produced by the ACR. Finally, the ACR has an important role in advocacy

for the interests of radiologists, medical physicists, and their patients through work with Congress, the U.S. Food and Drug

Administration (FDA), and state and local governments.

6. What is the American Council of Graduate Medical Education (ACGME)?

The ACGME is the body that accredits American residency training programs in radiology and all other fields of graduate

medical education. The ACGME develops requirements and guidelines for residency training programs in all fields. Among

its most noted recent actions are the limiting of the resident work week to 80 hours and the requirement that diagnostic

radiology residencies include 3 months of training in breast imaging.

7. What are the major subspecialty societies in radiology?

There are many subspecialty societies, and most of them have discounted memberships available for medical students or

residents (

Table 76-1

).

8. What are the leading academic journals within diagnostic radiology?

Radiology, the journal of the RSNA, and the American Journal of Roentgenology, the journal of the American Roentgen

Ray Society, are the two leading general-purpose radiology journals. There are numerous important subspecialty journals,

including the Journal of Interventional Radiology, American Journal of Neuroradiology (AJNR), Pediatric Radiology,

Magnetic Resonance in Medicine, Journal of Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Abdominal Imaging, and Journal of Nuclear

Medicine (see

Table 76-1

).

537

Diagnostic RaDiology as a PRofession

9. What is the NIBIB?

The National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering is the newest research institute within the National

Institutes of Health. Its stated mission is to “improve health by promoting fundamental discoveries, design and

development, and translation and assessment of technological capabilities.” It has become an important source of funding
for hypothesis-driven research in the imaging sciences (

http://www.nibib.nih.org

).

Table 76-1. Radiology Organizations and National Societies

SOCIETY

ABBREVIATION

JOURNAL

WEBSITE

Radiological Society of North

America

RSNA

Radiology

and RadioGraphics

www.rsna.org

American Board of Radiology

ABR

None

www.theabr.org

American College of

Radiology

ACR

Journal of the American College of

Radiology

(JACR)

www.acr.org

American Institute of

Ultrasound in Medicine

AIUM

Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine

(JUM)

www.aium.org

American Roentgen Ray

Society

ARRS

American Journal of Roentgenology

(AJR)

www.arrs.org

American Society of

Neuroradiology

ASNR

American Journal of Neuroradiology

(AJNR)

www.asnr.org

Association of University

Radiologists

AUR

Academic Radiology

www.aur.org

British Institute of Radiology

BIR

British Journal of Radiology

www.bir.org.uk

Canadian Association of

Radiologists

CAR

Canadian Association of Radiologists

Journal

www.car.ca

European Association of

Radiology

EAR

European Radiology

www.eurorad.org

International Society of

Magnetic Resonance in

Medicine

ISMRM

Journal of Magnetic Resonance

Imaging

(JMRI ); Magnetic

Resonance in Medicine

(MRM)

www.ismrm.org

International Society of

Radiology

ISR

None

www.isradiology.

org/isr/

Radiological Society of South

Africa

RSSA

South African Journal of Radiology

www.rssa.co.za

Royal Australian and

New Zealand College of

Radiologists

RANZCR

Australasian Radiology

www.ranzcr.edu.au

Society of Breast Imaging

SBI

None

www.sbi-online.org

Society for Imaging

Informatics in Medicine

SIIM

Journal of Digital Imaging

www.scarnet.org

Society of Interventional

Radiology

SIR

Journal of Vascular and

Interventional Radiology

(JVIR)

www.sirweb.org

Society of Nuclear Medicine

SNM

Journal of Nuclear Medicine

(JNM)

www.snm.org

Society for Pediatric

Radiology

SPR

Pediatric Radiology

www.pedrad.org

Society of Skeletal Radiology

SSR

Skeletal Radiology

www.skeletalrad.org

Society of Thoracic Radiology

STR

Thoracic Radiology

www.thoracicrad.org

Key Points: Radiology Organizations

1. In the United States, the RSNA and ARRS are the two most important general-interest organizations for radiologists

and have broad missions in terms of radiology education and research.

2. The American Board of Radiology administers the written and oral examinations that allow candidates to become

board-certified in radiology.

3. The ACR accredits sites that perform diagnostic imaging studies and maintains quality standards.