Are CT angiograms overused?
The number of CT angiograms (CTAs) has gone up substantially, but the number of pulmonary emboli found has not, leading some researchers to question the utilization of this procedure. Researchers reviewed 1384 records of patient who underwent a CTA for suspected pulmonary embolism during a 7-month period (March-September) in 2002, 2003 and 2004. “The total number of CTAs performed during the study interval in 2004 was 43% higher than in 2002 and 47% higher than in 2003,” said Tom Reed, a medical student at Albert Einstein College of Medicine in Bronx, New York, and lead author of the study. There were 443 CTAs performed, with 62 positive for…
