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International Variation in Intervention Rates: What Are the Implications for Patient Selection?

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 March 2009

Nick Black ,
Mark E. Glickman ,
Jiao Ding  and
Ann Barry Flood
Nick Black
Affiliation:
London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Mark E. Glickman
Affiliation:
Harvard Medical School
Jiao Ding
Affiliation:
Dartmouth Medical School
Ann Barry Flood
Affiliation:
Dartmouth Medical School
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Abstract

While international variations in intervention rates are well recognized, little is known about their implications for patient selection. This paper describes an exploratory study in which the probability of undergoing an elective intervention (surgery for benign prostatic hyperplasia) in an area in the United Kingdom was compared with an area in the United States. It found that the area with high intervention rates was associated with higher levels of surgery in men with low levels of need who are unlikely to gain much benefit.

Type
General Essays
Information
International Journal of Technology Assessment in Health Care , Volume 11 , Issue 4 , Fall 1995 , pp. 718 - 732
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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