J.Jpn. Surg. Soc.. 126(1): 16-21, 2025

---

Feature topic

PEDIATRIC SURGERY IN AN ERA OF DECLINING BIRTHRATES AND INTERACTION BETWEEN PEDIATRIC SURGERY AT CHILDREN’S HOSPITAL AND THE DEPARTMENT OF PEDIATRIC SURGERY, HOKKAIDO UNIVERSITY

The decline in Japan’s birthrate has led to a notable reduction in the number of neonatal surgical cases, except in metropolitan areas. However, the mortality rate for neonatal surgical cases has improved markedly, from 50％ in the 1970s to 4.4％ in 2018, indicating that perinatal care has improved markedly. Additionally, the number of pediatric surgeons has increased, from 661 in 2006 to 849 in 2022. This growth can be attributed to an expansion in the number of doctors who have received training since 2009. The decline in surgical cases for young pediatric surgeons presents a challenge to the maintenance and improvement of pediatric surgical care.
The educational role of pediatric surgery at Children’s Hospital, Hokkaido University, is of paramount importance in providing experience for young surgeons and fostering breakthroughs through personnel exchanges. The Department of Surgery at the university also promotes the incorporation of new technologies into pediatric surgical care, such as applying adult surgical treatments to pediatric surgery. The fluid exchange of personnel between pediatric surgeons at the Children’s Hospital and University Hospital, who are in different positions, is important for new breakthroughs, and we hope that young pediatric surgeons will gain experience with a broad perspective.

---

---

To read the PDF file you will need Adobe Reader installed on your computer.