Citation

Melnick ER. Acad. Emerg. Med. 2016; 24(3): 391-392.

Affiliation

Department of Emergency Medicine, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT. edward.melnick@yale.edu.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Society for Academic Emergency Medicine, Publisher John Wiley and Sons)

DOI

10.1111/acem.13084

PMID

27617902

Abstract

In an electronic health record (EHR) chart review of adult ED trauma patients receiving a head CT from 2008-2013 within 14 community EDs, Sharp et al. estimate that approximately 1/3 of computed tomography (CT) scans in head injury are likely avoidable based on the Canadian CT Head Rule (CCHR).(1) The analysis includes 27,240 adult trauma patients receiving head CTs and uses in-depth chart review of 100 random encounters with 2 independent abstractors (with high inter-rater reliability) to adjust the estimated number of avoidable CTs-the top Choosing Wisely initiative for emergency medicine.(2) Overuse on the order of 1/3 is consistent with findings across the American healthcare system.(3) Specifically, overuse on the order of 1/3 is well-established for CT in ED patients with minor head injury. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

Language: en