Achieving high-value cardiac imaging: challenges and opportunities

Area of Science:

• Cardiology
• Medical Imaging
• Health Economics

Background:

• Cardiac imaging contributes significantly to healthcare costs, prompting initiatives to reduce inappropriate testing.
• Current appropriate use criteria often prioritize the test over the individual patient's needs.
• There is a need for patient-centered approaches to assess the true value of cardiac imaging.

Purpose of the Study:

• To define high-value cardiac imaging.
• To present a framework for evaluating echocardiography's efficacy without randomized controlled trials.
• To identify clinical scenarios where echocardiography offers high value and suggest methods to ensure its appropriate use.

Main Methods:

• Literature review and synthesis of existing appropriate use criteria.
• Development of a patient-centered paradigm for assessing imaging value.
• Proposal of clinical scenarios and implementation strategies for high-value echocardiography.

Main Results:

• A definition of high-value cardiac imaging is proposed.
• A novel paradigm for evaluating echocardiography in specific clinical contexts is presented.
• Specific clinical scenarios favoring high-value echocardiography are identified.

Conclusions:

• High-value cardiac imaging prioritizes patient-centered value and clinical utility.
• Echocardiography can be a high-value tool when applied appropriately within defined clinical scenarios.
• Strategies exist to enhance the likelihood of high-value cardiac imaging practices.