The study analyzed regional patterns of imaging, both appropriate and inappropriate, to stage newly diagnosed cases of prostate cancer. The research was conducted in prostate cancer patients because prostate cancer is a common disease, and there are clear, well-established guidelines for the use of imaging to stage it.
The researchers found that regions of the country with high rates of inappropriate imaging also had high rates of appropriate imaging. Similarly, regions with low rates of inappropriate imaging also had low rates of appropriate imaging. The researchers dubbed this finding the “Thermostat Model” and concluded that imaging use appears to be determined strongly by regional practice patterns and affinity for imaging, rather than solely by medical indication.
“Ultimately there appears to be an underuse of important services and overuse of nonessential ones,” said one study authors. “This forces us to wonder if low use areas, which may spend less money but also provide fewer of the recommended services for those patients who need them, are necessarily the model we should be promoting.”
Related Articles on Healthcare Utilization:
Commonwealth Fund: Increased Use of Primary Care Services Can Reduce Medicare Costs
Reducing Variation in the Use of MRIs
Study: Increased Hospital Capacity Associated With Increased Utilization, Costs
