on April 9, 2012 |
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Topics: Cardiovascular, Service Lines, Ultrasound, Imaging, Appropriateness, Quality, Performance Improvement
Megan Tooley
As reported by the Roundtable, there has been a great deal of debate recently amongst professional societies over the appropriate management of carotid artery disease, specifically regarding contradictory guidelines for deciding between carotid stenting and endarterectomy.
The utility of screening for carotid artery stenosis in asymptomatic patients is strongly questioned as well, with the U.S. Preventive Service Task Force assigning it a "D" recommendation, (i.e., the service is not recommended as there is “moderate or high certainty that the service has no net benefit or that the harms outweigh the benefits”). Adding a new layer to the debate is research published in the April issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology, which suggests that the increasing use of carotid duplex ultrasound screening for carotid artery stenosis may be driven by self-referrals from specialties performing revascularization.
Continue reading:
Is self-referral driving growth of carotid ultrasound?
