screening

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Introduction

Examinations aimed at detecting medical conditions early in their course or before they become symptomatic, often with the purpose of implementing treatment that will prevent or ameliorate the problem.

* see health maintenance for recommended screening

Principle

Effective screening involves affirmative answers to the following questions:

  • Is the condition sufficiently common?
  • Will the condition result in significant morbidity & mortality if left untreated?
  • Is there a reliable* & sensitive screening test?
  • Does it lead to accurate diagnosis?
  • Does detection during the asymptomatic phase result in a beneficial intervention? i.e. Is there effective treatment?

* specificity NOT explicity included, but adds an additional element if cost-effectiveness is to be considered

screening based on clinical guidelines needs to be individualized; shared decision-making should be documented & should include rationale for refusing recommended screening[4]

presenting evidence to patients regarding harms vs benefits for low-value screenings* infrequently alters their choice[3]

* screening for prostate cancer in men age 50-69 years

* screening for osteoporosis in low-risk women age 50-64 years

* screening for colon cancer in elderly age 76-85 years

Complications

  • incidental findings may lead to cascades of care resulting in psychological harm, financial burden, physical harm, & death[5]

Notes

More general terms

More specific terms

Additional terms

References

  1. Journal Watch 24(18):124, 2004 Massachusetts Medical Society
  2. van den Bruel A et al People's willingness to accept overdetection in cancer screening: population survey. BMJ 2015;350:h980 <PubMed> PMID: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/25736617 <Internet> http://www.bmj.com/content/350/bmj.h980
  3. 3.0 3.1 Sheridan SL, Sutkowi-Hemstreet A, Barclay C et al A Comparative Effectiveness Trial of Alternate Formats for Presenting Benefits and Harms Information for Low-Value Screening Services: A Randomized Clinical Trial. JAMA Intern Med. 2016 Jan 1;176(1):31-41. PMID: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26720730
  4. 4.0 4.1 Medical Knowledge Self Assessment Program (MKSAP) 17, 18 American College of Physicians, Philadelphia 2015, 2018
  5. 5.0 5.1 Ganguli I, Simpkin AL, Lupo C et al. Cascades of care after incidental findings in a US national survey of physicians. JAMA Netw Open 2019 Oct 2; 2:e1913325 PMID: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/31617925 Free PMC Article https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamanetworkopen/fullarticle/2752991