A retrospective analysis recently showed guidelines for routine preoperative testing have little influence on physician behavior. The most current study collected data from the National Ambulatory and Hospital Medical Care examined preoperative testing patterns from 1997 to 2010.
Here are six notes:
1. Results showed that while stress test ordering increased, electrocardiogram testing decreased. The rate of ECG testing went down from 19.4 percent from before the guidelines to 14.3 percent after the guidelines.
2. Alana Sigmund, MF, of New York University School of Medicine reveals she was shocked by the mixed response to American College of Cardiology/America Heart Association and American Society of Anesthesiologists guidance. She anticipated a more uniform response.
3. While ACC/AHA and ASA have provided guidelines for preoperative evaluations in 2002, many reports since than have displayed poor rates of adherence.
4. Dr. Sigmund hopes physicians will take note of the mixed response and take necessary measures to adhere to guidance in order to improve the quality of healthcare patients receive.
5. Gerald Smetana, MD, provides perspective on why physicians may not adherence to the new guidelines, stating it is difficult to change habits. However, he advocates for physicians to forgo customs and adhere to published guidelines.
6. Catherine Chen, MD, advises patients undergoing elective surgery to verify with their physicians whether they need additional cardiac or laboratory testing before entering the operating room.
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