image by: High Point Medical Center

HWN Suggests

When Evidence Says No, but Doctors Say Yes

For all the truly wondrous developments of modern medicine—imaging technologies that enable precision surgery, routine organ transplants, care that transforms premature infants into perfectly healthy kids, and remarkable chemotherapy treatments, to name a few—it is distressingly ordinary for patients to get treatments that research has shown are ineffective or even dangerous. Sometimes doctors simply haven’t kept up with the science. Other times doctors know the state of play perfectly well but continue to deliver these treatments because it’s profitable—or even because they’re popular and patients demand them. Some procedures are implemented based on studies that did not prove whether they…

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Featured

 Some medical treatments are pointless. But will patients want to know?

Senior doctors have published a list of 40 procedures that have little to no effect. In the age of health and lifestyle bloggers, it could shatter our illusion of control.

Previously Featured

Are American Women Having Unnecessary Hysterectomies?

The drastic surgical procedure is one of the most common among women in the U.S., but some doctors say it's being overperformed.

Considering Bone or Joint Surgery? You May Not Need It

For many common problems of the knee, hip, shoulder, spine and wrist, nonsurgical options may be just as good.

Dozens Of Women Allege Unwanted Surgeries And Medical Abuse In ICE Custody

Lawyers for the women allege that ICE did know — but that instead of taking action against the doctor or the detention facility, they say, ICE retaliated against the women who complained.

Epidemic Of Health Care Waste: From $1,877 Ear Piercing To ICU Overuse

Wasteful use of medical care has "become so normalized that I don't think people in the system see it," said Dr. Vikas Saini, president of the Lown Institute, a Boston think tank focused on making health care more effective, affordable and just. "We need more serious studies of what these practices are."

He Thought What He Was Doing Was Good for People

Why is it so difficult to prevent unnecessary medical procedures in the U.S. health-care system?

Many operations could be unnecessary, says leading surgeon

Certain types of elective surgery only benefit patients because of placebo effect, says Prof Andy Carr.

NHS wields the axe on 17 'unnecessary procedures'

Varicose vein surgery and tonsil removal feature on list of routine operations to be axed.

Out-Of-Control Physicians: Too Many Doctors Are Doing Too Many Things To Too Many Patients

Today, the best evidence suggests that such preoperative tests and treatments often do more harm than good. (Are you recognizing a theme here yet?).

Overtreatment Is Taking a Harmful Toll

When it comes to medical care, many patients and doctors believe more is better. But an epidemic of overtreatment — too many scans, too many blood tests, too many procedures — is costing the nation’s health care system at least $210 billion a year, according to the Institute of Medicine, and taking a human toll in pain, emotional suffering, severe complications and even death.

Reducing Unnecessary C-Sections in California

Overuse of c-sections matters because, while often lifesaving in limited circumstances, the surgery also brings serious risks for babies (such as higher rates of infection, respiratory complications, and neonatal intensive care unit stays, as well as lower breastfeeding rates) and for mothers (such as higher rates of hemorrhage, transfusions, infections, and blood clots).

Revealed: NHS plans to ration 34 everyday tests and treatments

Millions of patients in England will be stopped from having an X-ray on their sore back, hernia repair surgery or scan of their knee to detect arthritis under controversial plans from NHS and doctors to ration “unnecessary” treatment.

Rising Cesarean Rates: Are Primary Sections Overused?

Doubling of C-section rates from year 2000 to 2015 globally was declared an eye-opener on October 13, 2018, in FIGO World Congress. Rapid increase in rates without clear evidence of concomitant decrease in maternal or neonatal morbidity or mortality raises significant concern that cesarean delivery is overused.

Sky-high C-section rates in the US don’t translate to better birth outcomes

Women in the United States are giving birth by Cesarean section far more often than is necessary to keep maternal and neonatal mortality rates low.

The Fight to Stop Genital Surgeries on Intersex Infants

Intersex rights advocates are pushing for a ban on cosmetic genital surgeries for infants, saying they do irreparable harm.

Too Much Medicine Is Bad for Our Health

The evidence is compelling that we in the developed countries (especially the US) are overtesting for disease, overdiagnosing it, and overtreating. Wasteful medical care of milder or nonexistent problems does more harm than good to the individual patient, diverts scarce medical resources away from those who really need them, and is an unsustainable drain on the economy.

Why American doctors keep doing expensive procedures that don’t work

The proportion of medical procedures unsupported by evidence may be nearly half.

Why Are Medical Mistakes Our Third Leading Cause of Death?

I spend a lot of time going around to different places warning professionals and the public that overdiagnosis, overtesting, and overtreatment are bad for our health.

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

Medical education is built on the assumption that the more procedures or treatments doctors see and do, the more competent they'll be when they're independent. It can feel tempting to do more rather than less.

Why do surgeons continue to perform unnecessary surgery?

This responsibility is not negotiable. The onus is on us.

Resources

3 orthopaedic surgeries that might be doing patients (and their pockets) more harm than good

Our research has shown that people with back pain who seek a second opinion can avoid unnecessary spine surgery, including spinal fusion. And avoid Dr Google. Information on the internet usually oversells the benefits and downplays the harms of common surgeries such as spinal fusion, shoulder arthroscopy, and surgery for a torn ACL (ligament in the knee). You will find misleading information even on websites from trustworthy sources such as government and university websites.