Erik K. Paulson, MD

Erik K. Paulson, MD

Erik K. Paulson, MD, Robert Reeves Professor with Tenure and Chair of Department of Radiology

Chair of Duke’s Department of Radiology since 2013, Erik K. Paulson has a distinguished career that includes important leadership roles and groundbreaking achievements in research and patient care.

Committed to clinically driven research, Paulson has published extensively with more than 190 peer-reviewed publications. These publications reflect a sustained focus within three major areas of interest: hepatic cross-sectional imaging, CT technology assessment, and image guided intervention. Paulson’s work reflects collaboration within the Department of Radiology and with colleagues from the Departments of Medicine, Pathology, and Surgery.

A national leader in abdominal imaging, his leadership and expertise in hepatobiliary and pancreatic imaging has significantly impacted the way these disease processes are evaluated. He is considered a pioneer in the development of CT colonography. Most recently, Paulson has implemented state-of-the-art Dual Energy CT and enhanced ongoing efforts to reduce radiation dose in CT. He serves as a mentor for residents, fellows, and junior faculty.

Paulson’s work has won awards of excellence from the Radiological Society of North America, American Roentgen Ray Society, Society of Computed Body Tomography and Magnetic Resonance, and the Society of Gastrointestinal Radiologists. He was recently elected to the Board of Directors of the Society of Computed Body Tomography and Magnetic Resonance and is currently the president of that prestigious society.

Paulson earned his Bachelor of Science (Phi Beta Kappa) in Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology from the University of Colorado and MD at Duke University School of Medicine. Following an internship in Internal Medicine at Duke University, a residency and chief residency in Radiology at the University of Utah, and a fellowship in Abdominal Imaging at Duke, Paulson joined the Duke faculty in 1991. He was inducted into the honorary society Alpha Omega Alpha as a faculty member.

Dr Paulson served as Chairman of Diagnostic Radiology at MD Anderson Medical Center until his return to Duke in 2013.