The Gertner Institute for Epidemiology and Health Policy Research, Sheba Medical Center, Tel Hashomer, 5266202, Ramat-Gan, Israel.
Department of Emergency and Disaster Management, Faculty of Medicine, School of Public Health, Tel Aviv University, P.O. Box 39040, 6139001, Tel Aviv, Israel.
Isr J Health Policy Res. 2024 Apr 1;13(1):7. doi: 10.1186/s13584-024-00593-0.
Medical imaging tests are vital in healthcare but can be costly, impacting national health expenditures. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a crucial diagnostic tool for assessing medical conditions. However, the rising demand for MRI scans has frequently strained available resources. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of different imaging tests in individuals who eventually had an MRI, in the Israeli public health system.
An online survey of patient experience of scheduling an MRI was conducted in January-February 2023, among 557 Israeli adults, representing all four health maintenance organizations (HMOs). All participants had undergone an MRI in the public health system within the past year.
Results showed that 60% of participants underwent other imaging tests before their MRI scan. Of those, computed tomography (CT) scans (43%), X-rays (39%), and ultrasounds (32%) were the most common additional imaging procedures. In addition, of the 60% of participants, 23% had undergone more than one prior imaging examination.
These findings highlight the high prevalence of preliminary imaging tests prior to MRI, with many patients undergoing multiple tests for the same problem. The health system may need to evaluate whether current clinical guidelines defining the use of various imaging tests are cost-effective.
医学影像学检查在医疗保健中至关重要，但成本高昂，影响国家卫生支出。磁共振成像（MRI）是评估医疗状况的重要诊断工具。然而，MRI 扫描的需求不断增加，经常导致可用资源紧张。本研究旨在评估以色列公共卫生系统中最终接受 MRI 的个体中不同影像学检查的流行率。
2023 年 1 月至 2 月期间，在以色列的 557 名成年人中，通过在线调查了他们预约 MRI 的患者体验，这些成年人代表了所有四个健康维护组织（HMO）。所有参与者在过去一年内在公共卫生系统中接受过 MRI 检查。
结果表明，60%的参与者在 MRI 扫描前进行了其他影像学检查。其中，计算机断层扫描（CT）（43%）、X 光（39%）和超声（32%）是最常见的额外影像学程序。此外，在 60%的参与者中，有 23%的人进行了超过一次的预先影像学检查。
这些发现突出了在 MRI 之前进行初步影像学检查的高流行率，许多患者因同一问题进行了多次检查。卫生系统可能需要评估当前定义各种影像学检查使用的临床指南是否具有成本效益。
