Study: Additional trauma patient CT scans do not offer clinically significant findings

Researchers from the University of Pittsburgh have suggested that extensive, nonfocused CT examinations for trauma patients transferred from another facility to their institution may be unnecessary, as the additional imaging does not provide clinically significant results that would change patient treatment.

“We estimate that CT utilization, imaging costs and radiation dose can be reduced by at least 50% if the standard imaging protocol is replaced by imaging dictated by the patient’s history and physical examination findings,” Matthew Heller, MD, from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, stated in a press release.

Heller and colleagues analyzed the results of 100 level I and level II trauma patients admitted from another facility to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. When transferred, the standard protocol for the patients is to undergo head, chest, cervical spine, thoracic spine, lumbar spine, abdomen and pelvis CT scans, Heller said. For every patient, there were five CT scans that were not considered clinically significant or were negative.

“We found that these additional tests generated 463 negative CT examinations,” Heller said. “In seven patients, there were minor unexpected acute findings, such as non-displaced rib fractures. However, the findings did not change the treatment of any of these patients.”

Reference:

Heller M. Paper #13. Presented at: American Roentgen Ray Society Annual Meeting; April 14-19, 2013; Washington, D.C.

Disclosure: Heller has no relevant financial disclosures.