overtreatment

The habit of ordering unneeded tests and treatments drives up medical costs. It's a pattern doctors often learn in medical school and residency.

Health & Safety

Why Do Doctors Overtreat? For Many, It's What They're Trained To Do

12:30pm April 19, 2019

by Mara Gordon

Ordering more tests or treatments is not always best for patients' health or wallet. A group of medical educators is trying to address the problem where they think it starts: medical training.

For severe heart failure patients, an LVAD, or left ventricular-assist device, helps the heart pump blood.

Perspective: A Heart Device Can Save Lives, But Doctors Need To Explain The Downsides

11:12am September 30, 2018

by Dr. Matthew Movsesian

A mechanical pump can be life-saving for heart failure patients or it can cause dangerous complications. Doctors can do a better job at explaining the reasons some patients may want to opt out.

Screening for lung cancer can catch tumors but it can also produce false positives. Patients need to decide whether it's right for them, but doctors often don't know how to advise them.

Should You Get That Scan? Your Doctor Might Not Be Great At Helping You Decide

5:55pm August 18, 2018

In a new study, researchers found that doctors are better at explaining the benefits of a common cancer screening that its potential downsides. But overtesting comes with risks and costs of its own.

A change in guidelines for breast cancer surgery has resulted in fewer women having to undergo repeat surgeries.

Fewer Women Need To Undergo Repeat Surgery After Lumpectomy

5:43pm June 05, 2017

by Patti Neighmond

A change in guidelines for lumpectomy surgery in 2014 has already reduced the number of women undergoing additional surgery, including mastectomy, by 16 percent.

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Arthritis of the knee is very common, and isn't helped by arthroscopic surgery, a study finds.

Arthroscopic Surgery Doesn't Help With Arthritis Knee Pain

10:35am May 11, 2017

by Carmen Heredia Rodriguez

This is the latest study to find that arthroscopic surgery doesn't reduce pain for people with knee arthritis, and can cause other problems. The procedure remains popular in the U.S.

A color-enhanced spiral CT image of the chest shows a large cancerous mass (in yellow) in the left upper lobe.

Lung Cancer Screening Program Finds A Lot That's Not Cancer

4:57pm January 30, 2017

by Richard Harris

Scanning people at risk for lung cancer finds many nodules that aren't cancerous but prompt more procedures, a study at the VA finds. A small number of people did get their cancer diagnosed early on.

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Neck strain might not feel like a CT-worthy injury to you, but it's increasingly getting advanced imaging.

People With Minor Injuries Are Increasingly Getting CT Scans

2:47pm January 19, 2016

by Nancy Shute

The number of people with injuries like neck strain who get CT scans in emergency rooms is on the rise. This despite efforts to reduce use of the scans, which increase cancer risk.

Babies in the neonatal intensive care unit hospital don't always need the tests and treatments suggested.

5 Things Your Baby Should Avoid In The NICU

12:52pm July 21, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Babies in the neonatal intensive care unit often get multiple tests and treatments a day. Not all of them help, and some can hurt. Neonatologists have picked the five least likely to do good.

More Mammograms May Not Always Mean Fewer Cancer Deaths

10:57am July 08, 2015

by Nancy Shute

A comparison of women in 547 U.S. counties found that getting more women in for screening mammograms didn't lower death rates from breast cancer. More small cancers were found.

When it comes to treating headaches, neurologist Carolyn Bernstein says, "There is no magic pill."

For Headaches, A Lifestyle Change May Be Better Than A Doctor Visit

5:07pm May 11, 2015

by Patti Neighmond

Each year more than 12 million Americans go to the doctor because of severe, chronic headaches. Many are sent for expensive tests. Researchers say all this testing isn't doing people much good.

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