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Avoiding Unnecessary and Risky Heart Disease Testing

Posted on Jun 18, 2011

The New York Times this week tackled cost- and risk-effective methods to test for heart disease. According to the director of the health ratings center at Consumer Reports Health, too many tests are unnecessary and carry certain health risks.

Perhaps extra tests are desirable specifically for heart disease, which is the cause of one in every three deaths in the United States. Accounting for 800,000 deaths annually, heart disease is the number one killer in America.

Still, the increased use of testing may provide undesirable results. The most invasive and thorough test, the CT angiogram, is expensive ($5000) and carries health risks related to the radiation the test requires. According to The Archives of Internal Medicine, patients with lower risk of heart disease were more likely to be subjected to these kinds of tests. And yet, lower-risk patients went on to suffer fewer subsequent strokes and heart attacks.

In light of these inefficiencies and dangers, the New York Times listed a series of steps to follow to test for heart disease, in an effort to hold the most involved examinations for last. The first step is to use the most basic of screening tests. This includes simple blood pressure tests and cholesterol screenings. Next, for overweight patients, annual fasting blood sugar tests are necessary. For those showing signs of heart disease, an EKG or stress test is the third step. Finally, if heart disease remains possible, only then may a coronary angiography be necessary.

As a practicing medical malpractice, wrongful death, and personal injury attorney in New York, I deal with the consequences of risky treatments like this every day. If you have experienced related problems, I want you to pick up the phone and call me. I can help. If you would like more information about how medical malpractice cases work in the state of New York, I encourage you to explore my educational website. If you have legal questions, pick up the phone and call me at 516-487-8207 or by e-mail at lawmed10@yahoo.com to answer your questions. That's what I do every day. I welcome your call.

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Gerry practices law exclusively in the State of New York. Within New York he practices primarily in the following counties: New York, Brooklyn, Queens, Bronx, Staten Island, Nassau and Suffolk. Technically, Brooklyn is known as "Kings County," and Manhattan and New York City are known as "New York County." Staten Island is known as "Richmond County." These counties make up the New York metropolitan area.