Posters
Academic Level (Author 1)
Fellow
Discipline/Specialty (Author 1)
Internal Medicine
Discipline Track
Patient Care
Abstract
Background: The 2011 Appropriate Use Criteria (AUC) for echocardiography was developed to guide in the rational use of high quality cardiovascular imaging. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) orders with seemingly inappropriate indications were repeatedly identified at our hospital. Our goals were to identify the percentage of inappropriate TTEs, find a correlation between ordering physicians and appropriateness of TTEs, and reduce the inappropriate use of TTEs in the inpatient setting.
Methods: After implementing a required free-text indication for TTE orders, the indications of 100 random TTEs were retrospectively categorized as appropriate, inappropriate, and uncertain based on the AUC. TTEs for cardiac evaluation prior to cardiac surgery, structural heart procedures, or electrophysiology procedures were excluded. Ordering physicians were categorized as resident, ER physician, intensivist, hospitalist, or cardiologist. Linear regression statistical analysis was used to identify correlations between a category of ordering physicians and appropriateness of TTE orders.
Results: Most TTE orders were placed by residents (37%) and hospitalists (36%). TTE indications were mostly appropriate (88%). Only 6 TTE orders were inappropriately indicated (4 were placed by residents). There was no significant correlation between a category of ordering physicians and appropriateness of TTE orders (p-value = 0.44). Hemodynamic instability, heart failure, atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular rate, and stroke were the most common appropriate indications.
Conclusion: In our hospital, most TTEs are appropriately indicated and without a significant correlation between ordering physicians and TTE appropriateness. Based on our findings, we plan to improve our TTE order sets by creating a short drop-down menu with the most common appropriate indications.
Presentation Type
Poster
Recommended Citation
Avalos, Christian D. and Aude, Y. Wady, "Appropriateness of Inpatient Transthoracic Echocardiography in a Community Hospital with a New Cardiology Fellowship Program" (2023). Research Colloquium. 9.
https://scholarworks.utrgv.edu/colloquium/2022/posters/9
Included in
Appropriateness of Inpatient Transthoracic Echocardiography in a Community Hospital with a New Cardiology Fellowship Program
Background: The 2011 Appropriate Use Criteria (AUC) for echocardiography was developed to guide in the rational use of high quality cardiovascular imaging. Transthoracic echocardiography (TTE) orders with seemingly inappropriate indications were repeatedly identified at our hospital. Our goals were to identify the percentage of inappropriate TTEs, find a correlation between ordering physicians and appropriateness of TTEs, and reduce the inappropriate use of TTEs in the inpatient setting.
Methods: After implementing a required free-text indication for TTE orders, the indications of 100 random TTEs were retrospectively categorized as appropriate, inappropriate, and uncertain based on the AUC. TTEs for cardiac evaluation prior to cardiac surgery, structural heart procedures, or electrophysiology procedures were excluded. Ordering physicians were categorized as resident, ER physician, intensivist, hospitalist, or cardiologist. Linear regression statistical analysis was used to identify correlations between a category of ordering physicians and appropriateness of TTE orders.
Results: Most TTE orders were placed by residents (37%) and hospitalists (36%). TTE indications were mostly appropriate (88%). Only 6 TTE orders were inappropriately indicated (4 were placed by residents). There was no significant correlation between a category of ordering physicians and appropriateness of TTE orders (p-value = 0.44). Hemodynamic instability, heart failure, atrial fibrillation with rapid ventricular rate, and stroke were the most common appropriate indications.
Conclusion: In our hospital, most TTEs are appropriately indicated and without a significant correlation between ordering physicians and TTE appropriateness. Based on our findings, we plan to improve our TTE order sets by creating a short drop-down menu with the most common appropriate indications.