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Multiple MPI testing common, associated with high cumulative doses of radiation in patients
Einstein AJ. JAMA. 2010;304:2137-2144.
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A retrospective cohort study of more than 1,000 patients has indicated that patients undergoing multiple myocardial perfusion imaging is common and is linked with high levels of cumulative estimated doses of radiation.
The New York-based researchers analyzed 1,097 consecutive patients who underwent index myocardial perfusion imaging (MPI) during the first 100 days of 2006 at Columbia University Medical Center. The main outcome measures were cumulative effective dose of radiation, indications for testing and number of procedures involving radiation.
Overall, the median number of procedures involving radiation in patients was 15 (interquartile range [IQR], 6-32), with a median of four (IQR, 2-8) being characterized as high-dose procedures of at least 3 mSv. Physicians performed multiple MPIs in 424 patients (38.6%), who had a cumulative estimated effective dose of 121 mSv (IQR, 81-189 mSv).
“We observed multiple testing with MPI to be common and in many patients to be associated with very high cumulative estimated doses of radiation,” the researchers wrote in their concluding statement. “Efforts are needed to decrease this high cumulative dose and its potential attendant risks.”
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