Adopting early noninvasive cardiac testing is a cost-effective strategy for avoiding a future heart attack or death in patients with suspected acute coronary syndrome, according to a study published May 24 in Academic Emergency Medicine.
Researchers conducted a retrospective analysis of 89,387 Kaiser Permanente Southern California patients to examine care costs and quality-adjusted life-years associated with early noninvasive cardiac testing.
Here are five notes from the study:
- Of the 89,387 patients included in the study, 19% received early noninvasive cardiac testing.
- Total care costs were higher by $2,357 for patients who received early noninvasive cardiac testing compared to patients who did not. The higher costs were mainly attributed to the patient’s initial emergency department visit.
- In a one-year follow-up, patients who received early noninvasive cardiac testing had a 3.7% lower composite risk of nonfatal heart attack or death.
- Researchers determined that early noninvasive cardiac testing was cost-effective at $5,268 per quality-adjusted life-years.
- “Due to the significant clinical benefits, early noninvasive cardiac testing [is] cost-effective in the low- and intermediate-risk patients [and] a dominant strategy in high-risk patients saving cost and quality-adjusted-life-years,” the study authors wrote.
Read the full study here.
