Imaging Appropriateness for Neck Pain.

Abstract

Imaging of neck pain contributes to a significant proportion of health care costs and is expected to increase with current practices that heavily use radiologic studies as a diagnostic tool. Though consensus guidelines are available to assist physicians in selection of appropriate imaging examinations for neck pain, it is unclear if current ordering practices reflect their use and understanding. To investigate this, we analyzed the number and types of imaging examinations performed for neck pain at a university medical center over the past year. Current trends at our institution suggest that clinicians use consensus imaging guidelines, but there is still controversy in the cervical spine for when not to image. To promote appropriate imaging utilization, we developed an algorithm to guide imaging of neck pain, based upon clinical presentation, referral patterns for neck pain, and a review of the literature.