Turkey Leads Growth in Interventional Radiology Awareness, But Key Barriers Remain.
Turkey Leads Growth in Interventional Radiology Awareness, But Key Barriers Remain.
Published: May 7, 2025
Source: Health Imaging
Key Points:
1. Global IR Awareness Still Low:
Despite the global growth of interventional radiology (IR), awareness remains limited outside the U.S., which leads in recognition and utilization.
2. U.S. Recognition:
IR is a primary medical specialty in the U.S. after graduating with an MD or DO degree*.
3. Turkey’s Emerging Role:
• Turkey showed the highest growth in public interest in IR among five countries studied (U.S., Turkey, UK, Germany, France).
• Searches for procedures like ablation and thrombectomy rose notably post-2014.
4. Challenges in Turkey:
• Despite interest, IR information in Turkish is often low-quality and incomplete.
• Lack of educational resources, language barriers, and limited structured training hinder the specialty’s expansion.
5. European Trends:
• Countries like France and Germany show steady but slow growth in IR awareness.
• Barriers include traditional surgical referral pathways and lack of standardized IR training.
6. Recommendations:
• Standardize IR education across medical schools globally.
• Develop multilingual, accessible patient materials.
• Promote public and professional awareness through outreach and training programs.
Summary:
In the United States: Interventional Radiology (IR) as a Full Specialty
• IR is a recognized standalone medical specialty, not just a subspecialty.
• It is approved by the American Board of Medical Specialties (ABMS).
• Medical students can pursue IR directly after finishing medical school with either an MD or a DO degree.
• Just like other specialties (e.g., surgery, internal medicine, pediatrics), they can choose to train in Interventional Radiology.
• There are dedicated residency programs in IR that are separate from diagnostic radiology.
• These programs train doctors to perform minimally invasive procedures using imaging (like X-rays, CT, or ultrasound).
• Note: IR doctors still receive training in both diagnostic and interventional imaging, especially during early years of residency.
Europe and Turkey: IR as a Subspecialty
• In most European countries (including the UK) and Turkey, Interventional Radiology is still considered a subspecialty of Diagnostic Radiology.
• Doctors must first become radiologists and then receive additional specialized training in IR.
• There is growing recognition of IR, but many countries still lack structured, independent IR training pathways.
*Note on DO Degree vs Osteopath in Europe
• The DO (Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine) degree is awarded only in the United States, but it is recognized in many countries (including UK, Canada, Australia, KSA,UAE,Qatar,Jordan)..After completing the local equivalency process , DOs have the same medical rights and responsibilities as MDs.
• In Europe, the word “osteopath” usually refers to a non-physician manual therapist.
They are not licensed medical doctors, cannot prescribe medications, and do not perform surgery.
