Sharp Increase in Advanced Imaging Exams and Referrals for Patients with Headaches
By MedImaging International staff writers Posted on 04 Feb 2015 |
Medical guidelines in the United States recommend lifestyle counseling as preferred treatment for patients complaining of headaches. However, despite this advice, a study published in the January 8, 2015, issue of Journal of General Internal Medicine has found a sharp increase in prescriptions of preventive medications, referrals to other doctors, and for Computed Tomography (CT) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI).
The study compared how headache symptoms were dealt with during 9,362 doctor's visits (representing 144 million doctors’ visits from the year 1999 to 2010). The mean age of the patients was 46 years, and the gender was predominantly female (nearly 75%).
The researchers from the Harvard Medical School (HMS; Boston, MA, USA), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC; Boston, MA, USA), and the Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston, MA, USA) used a US nationally-representative sample of clinician visits for headaches provided by US National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) and National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS), excluding trauma, cancer, and visits in cases of neurological deficit.
The researchers found a nearly twofold increase from 8.5% to 15.9% in prescriptions of preventive medications in 2009–2010 compared to 1999–2000, an increase of physician referrals from 6.9% to 13.2%, and an increase in the use of CT/MRI from 6.7% to 13.9%.
Related Links:
HMS
BIDMC
Massachusetts General Hospital
The study compared how headache symptoms were dealt with during 9,362 doctor's visits (representing 144 million doctors’ visits from the year 1999 to 2010). The mean age of the patients was 46 years, and the gender was predominantly female (nearly 75%).
The researchers from the Harvard Medical School (HMS; Boston, MA, USA), Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC; Boston, MA, USA), and the Massachusetts General Hospital (Boston, MA, USA) used a US nationally-representative sample of clinician visits for headaches provided by US National Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NAMCS) and National Hospital Ambulatory Medical Care Survey (NHAMCS), excluding trauma, cancer, and visits in cases of neurological deficit.
The researchers found a nearly twofold increase from 8.5% to 15.9% in prescriptions of preventive medications in 2009–2010 compared to 1999–2000, an increase of physician referrals from 6.9% to 13.2%, and an increase in the use of CT/MRI from 6.7% to 13.9%.
Related Links:
HMS
BIDMC
Massachusetts General Hospital
Latest Radiography News
- Novel Breast Imaging System Proves As Effective As Mammography
- AI Assistance Improves Breast-Cancer Screening by Reducing False Positives
- AI Could Boost Clinical Adoption of Chest DDR
- 3D Mammography Almost Halves Breast Cancer Incidence between Two Screening Tests
- AI Model Predicts 5-Year Breast Cancer Risk from Mammograms
- Deep Learning Framework Detects Fractures in X-Ray Images With 99% Accuracy
- Direct AI-Based Medical X-Ray Imaging System a Paradigm-Shift from Conventional DR and CT
- Chest X-Ray AI Solution Automatically Identifies, Categorizes and Highlights Suspicious Areas
- AI Diagnoses Wrist Fractures As Well As Radiologists
- Annual Mammography Beginning At 40 Cuts Breast Cancer Mortality By 42%
- 3D Human GPS Powered By Light Paves Way for Radiation-Free Minimally-Invasive Surgery
- Novel AI Technology to Revolutionize Cancer Detection in Dense Breasts
- AI Solution Provides Radiologists with 'Second Pair' Of Eyes to Detect Breast Cancers
- AI Helps General Radiologists Achieve Specialist-Level Performance in Interpreting Mammograms
- Novel Imaging Technique Could Transform Breast Cancer Detection
- Computer Program Combines AI and Heat-Imaging Technology for Early Breast Cancer Detection