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Pediatric Surgeons

Pediatric Surgeons: Career Overview

Diagnose and perform surgery to treat fetal abnormalities and birth defects, diseases, and injuries in fetuses, premature and newborn infants, children, and adolescents. Includes all pediatric surgical specialties and subspecialties.

What Tasks Do Pediatric Surgeons Perform?

Typical responsibilities of pediatric surgeons include:

  • Analyze patient's medical history, medication allergies, physical condition, and examination results to verify operation's necessity and to determine best procedure.
  • Conduct research to develop and test surgical techniques that can improve operating procedures and outcomes.
  • Consult with patient's other medical care specialists, such as cardiologist and endocrinologist, to determine if surgery is necessary.
  • Describe preoperative and postoperative treatments and procedures, such as sedatives, diets, antibiotics, or preparation and treatment of the patient's operative area, to parents or guardians of the patient.
  • Direct and coordinate activities of nurses, assistants, specialists, residents, and other medical staff.
  • Examine fetuses, infants, children, and adolescents, and diagnose health issues to determine need for intervention, such as surgery.
  • Examine instruments, equipment, and operating room to ensure sterility.
  • Examine patient to obtain information on medical condition and surgical risk.

Other Pediatric Surgeons Job Titles

People in this occupation may also be known by titles such as:

  • Brain Surgeon
  • Cardiac Surgeon
  • Cardiothoracic Surgeon
  • Cardiothoracic Surgery Physician
  • Cardiovascular Surgeon
  • Cardiovascular Surgery Physician
  • Colon and Rectal Surgeon
  • Colorectal Surgeon

Employment and Demand

There are about 1,188,665 pediatric surgeons working in the United States today. Employment is projected to grow by +10.5% over the projection horizon.

Forecasted number of jobs for Pediatric Surgeons

How Much Do Pediatric Surgeons Make?

Statistic Value
Annual median $71,888
Hourly median $34.56
10th percentile $42,806
25th percentile $57,347
75th percentile $86,429
90th percentile $100,971

Pay can vary substantially based on experience, location, and industry.

Salary ranges for Pediatric Surgeons

Pediatric Surgeons Salary by State

State Annual median salary
Illinois $89,450

Top-Paying U.S. Regions

Pay for pediatric surgeons differ across the country. These regions lead on median pay:

Region Median annual wage Share of U.S. jobs Location quotient
Great Lakes $89,450 15.0% 0.77

Highest-Paying Metro Areas for Pediatric Surgeons

Metro area State Median annual wage Employment
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN IL $89,450 30

Top Industries Employing Pediatric Surgeons

Most pediatric surgeons work in these industries:

Industry Employment Median annual wage
Health Care and Social Assistance 1,040 n/a

Below are examples of industries where pediatric surgeons work:

Pediatric Surgeons industries

Software Pediatric Surgeons Use

  • Medical software: Epic Systems (hot technology)
  • Medical software: MEDITECH software (hot technology)
  • Operating system software: Microsoft Windows (hot technology)

Education and Training

This occupation sits in Extensive Preparation Needed (Job Zone 5), indicating the level of preparation typically expected.

Similar Occupations

Similar Occupations

Degree Programs

Aspiring pediatric surgeons typically earn programs in:

11 programs across 5 majors

2 programs across 1 majors

About the Data

This profile draws on the following authoritative sources:

  • U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for employment and wage data by state and industry.
  • BLS Employment Projections for total employment and growth forecasts.
  • O*NET (Occupational Information Network) for skills, knowledge, tasks, work activities, work context, technology, and education-zone data.

SOC code: 29-1243.00 (Pediatric Surgeons).

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