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Article: CT could help avoid unnecessary hospitalization.(in the news)(Brief article)
- Article from:
- ASRT Scanner
- Article date:
- January 1, 2007
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2007 American Society of Radiologic Technologists. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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A 15-second multidetector-row computed tomography scan could help physicians determine which patients with chest pain can be discharged from the hospital because their symptoms are unlikely to be heart related.
The triage of chest pain is a significant challenge for hospital emergency departments. Hospitals often admit patients with normal electrocardiogram results for observation and repeat ECGs, blood tests and other tests to rule out heart problems. Additional tests, such as stress perfusion imaging and cardiac catheterization, are invasive and carry risks. After all the testing and an average of 30 hours in the hospital, fewer than 40 percent of patients with ...