RAND: Underuse of Medical Imaging
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"…In the area of primary prevention, relatively inexpensive services such as mammography and Pap smears are frequently underused…"
– McGlynn EA, et al.
"The Quality of Health Care Delivered to Adults in the United States,"
New England Journal of Medicine,
June 26, 2003. |
A study by the RAND Corporation published in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2003 concludes that the quality of care in the United States is well below par because people do not receive the appropriate level of widely-established, well-documented treatments.1 The authors found that patients received only slightly more than half of recommended health care practices – resulting in significant threats to the nation's health. Much of the underuse involved well-proven medical imaging tests and treatments. Click here to view the study
| Performance on Selected Quality-of-Care Indicators |
| CONDITION |
QUALITY INDICATOR |
MODE |
QUALITY PROBLEM |
| BREAST CANCER |
Appropriate follow-up of palpable mass |
Radiography or Lab Testing |
Underuse |
| CEREBROVASCULAR DISEASE |
Carotid imaging for patients with symptomatic cardiovascular disease or transient ischemic attack |
Radiography or Lab Testing |
Underuse |
| COLORECTAL CANCER |
Screening for high-risk patients starting at age 40 |
Radiography or Lab Testing |
Underuse |
| CONGESTIVE HEART FAILURE |
Ejection fraction assessed before medical therapy |
Radiography or Lab Testing |
Underuse |
| HEADACHE |
CT or MRI for patients with new onset headache and an abnormal neurological exam |
Radiography or Lab Testing |
Underuse |
| PREVENTIVE CARE |
Mammographic screening for breast cancer |
Radiography or lab testing |
Underuse |
| PREVENTIVE CARE |
Screening for colorectal cancer in persons at average risk |
Radiography or Lab Testing |
Underuse |
1 "The Quality of Health Care Delivered to Adults in the United States," McGlynn EA, Asch SM, Adams J, Keesey J, Hicks J, DeCristofaro A, Kerr EA, New England Journal of Medicine, 348:2635-45, June 26, 2003.
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