William H. McAlister, MD

William H. McAlister, MD, professor of radiology and of pediatrics, is being honored for his more than 60-year career in advancing the field of pediatric radiology and for his tireless dedication to taking care of patients and mentoring fellows at Washington University.

One of the world’s leading radiology experts in skeletal dysplasias and metabolic bone disease in children, McAlister is most noted for his research related to the treatment of patients with hypophosphatasia, a rare genetic disorder that disrupts the normal development of bone and teeth. His research efforts have resulted in more than 600 publications.

McAlister was section chief of pediatric radiology at Mallinckrodt Institute of Radiology and St. Louis Children’s Hospital for more than 40 years before stepping down in 2006. Today, as an octogenarian, he serves as a superb role model for colleagues and trainees and continues to take full call duty. His lifelong contributions to patient care have been at the forefront of many innovations and improvements in image assessment.

His vast repository of knowledge is exceptional, colleagues report, and he has held multiple leadership positions at the medical center and nationally, including serving as president of the Society for Pediatric Radiology. The society awarded McAlister its Gold Medal in 1998 to honor his many seminal contributions to pediatric radiology. McAlister has been active in the American College of Radiology and in the American Board of Radiology. He has received Distinguished Service Awards from Washington University and St. Louis Children’s Hospital.

McAlister earned his medical degree from Wayne State University College of Medicine and completed his residency and fellowship training at Cincinnati General Hospital. He joined the Washington University School of Medicine faculty in 1960.