Health and Economic Benefits of Cardiac Imaging Shown in Studies

Two recent studies were shown to validate the health and economic benefits of cardiac scans and serve as important reminders of the value of medical imaging.

The first study, led by Dr. Andrew Kahn from the London Health Sciences Center, University of Western Ontario (London, ON, Canada) and published in the September 2008 issue of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology (JACC), demonstrated the cost-effectiveness of repeated echocardiography and multigated acquisition (MUGA) scanning in determining patient eligibility for an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD). Using a prospective cohort study that evaluated 100 patients referred for an ICD, the test results showed that using cardiac imaging to verify the heart's blood pumping capacity resulted in identifying a significant number of patients--31 of the 100 included in the study--as ineligible for an ICD. These findings ultimately lead to over US$603,000 total savings, or approximately $6,000 per patient.

The second study, published in the August 2008 issue of the American Journal of Roentgenology (AJR) and led by Dr. Joseph Ladapo and his team from Harvard University (Cambridge, MA, USA), identified additional cost-benefits of cardiac imaging by evaluating patients who presented to the emergency room (ER) with low-risk chest pain. Their research compared the "standard of care” to multidetector computed tomography (MDCT) coronary angiography-base management and found MDCT to be cost effective for men, and cost saving for women. Hospital costs decreased by an average of $410 per female patient, whereas general per capita healthcare expenditures decreased $380 for women.

"Because coronary CT angiography is so good at ruling out disease, women…are much more likely to avoid a costly admission,” said Dr. Ladapo. "I think there's a strong case for reimbursing this technology when it's used in women, but it's cost effective and ought to be reimbursed in men, too.”

"Access to high-quality medical imaging has proven to be an essential factor in cardiac care, and it is crucial that patients, doctors, and policymakers alike look to studies like these as yet another example of how imaging technology can improve patient treatment while reducing overall costs,” said Maureen Zilly, director, Government Relations, Medical Imaging & Technology Alliance (MITA; Rosslyn, VA, USA). "MITA applauds the work of Dr. Krahn and Dr. Ladapo, whose research reminds us of how critical it is that patients and their doctors have access to life-saving medical imaging technology, enabling them to benefit from the right scan at the right time in fighting serious illness such as heart disease.”

MITA is a division of the US National Electrical Manufacturers Association.

Related Links:
London Health Sciences Center, University of Western Ontario
Harvard University