Overtesting and undertesting in primary care: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

ABSTRACT: BACKGROUND:Health systems are currently subject to unprecedented financial strains. Inappropriate test use wastes finite health resources (overuse) and delays diagnoses and treatment (underuse). As most patient care is provided in primary care, it represents an ideal setting to mitigate waste. OBJECTIVE:To identify overuse and underuse of diagnostic tests in primary care. DESIGN:Systematic review and meta-analysis. DATA SOURCES AND ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:We searched MEDLINE and Embase from January 1999 to October 2017 for studies that measured the inappropriateness of any diagnostic test (measured against a national or international guideline) ordered for adult patients in primary care. RESULTS:We included 357 171 patients from 63 studies in 15 countries. We extracted 103 measures of inappro

SUBMITTER: O'Sullivan JW 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5829845 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature