Few Patients Know the Risk of CT Scans

  • 3/6/2013 - 11:43am
  • 163 reads

ct scanThe risks associated with undergoing CT scans are not being adequately communicated to patients, according to a survey conducted by researchers at the University of Colorado in Aurora.

The survey included 271 patients and was conducted at the Denver Veterans Affairs Medical Center.  Of those participants, 86% were 50-years-old or older, 92% were male, and 92% had undergone at least 1 CT scan.  

Of the patients taking the survey, only 35% reported having discussed the dangers of CT scans with a healthcare professional, with 62% of patients saying they were never given the choice whether to undergo the procedure in the first place. 

Only 17% reported a shared final decision and discussing the benefits and dangers with a healthcare provider.

"Up to one in three imaging tests in the U.S. are ordered in situations when the expected benefits do not sufficiently exceed the risks," they wrote, warning that "clinicians are not well informed about the risks of medical imaging."

-Michael Potts

Caverly T, Prochazka A, Cook-Shimanek M, et al. Weighing the Potential Harms of Computed Tomography: Patient Survey [published online ahead of print March 4, 2013].  JAMA Intern Med. 2013;():1-2. doi:10.1001/jamainternmed.2013.2918.