Gender Disparities Among Craniofacial Surgeons

Objective : To delineate career differences between genders of practicing plastic surgeons who have completed craniofacial fellowship given the known disparities in surgeons’ professional and personal lives and an already lengthy residency training, there is concern that less women may commit to further fellowship training. Design : Craniofacial fellowship programs were contacted to identify graduates and an internet search was attempted where information was not available. Surgeon profiles and literature databases were used to obtain practice demographics and publications. Participants : Accredited fellowships were identified through the American Society of Craniofacial Surgeons directory. Results : Program responses along with internet searches identified 201 graduates from 26 programs, of which 132 (66%) were men and 69 (34%) were women. On average, male graduates had 7.1 years in practice versus 6.6 years for females graduates (P =.176). There were significant differences between average number of publications (24.7 publications for males vs 14.1 for females, P =.009) and academic practice (46% males vs 64% females, P =.018). A similar percentage of males and females held leadership positions (13% males vs 16%, P =.552). Conclusions : Despite similar years in practice, men had significantly higher publications while women were significantly more likely to practice in an academic setting. Females are increasing their representation in academia and leadership within the craniofacial community. However, efforts must still be directed at increasing exposure to craniofacial surgery and supporting research and leadership pursuits earlier on during their careers.