According to both government information and medical data alike, pacemakers, spinal fusions, and cesarean sections are three of the surgeries that have a high rate of being performed without being neccessary. This means that thousands of patients nationwide are undergoing serious, potentially dangerous surgeries, and having to pay exorbitant fees for the procedure and follow-up treatments. And without justification. Keep reading to learn more about these often gratuitous operations and what you can do about them.
According to a 2011 publication of the Journal of the American Medical Association, one of the most unnecessary procedures is
cardiac angioplasty. This operation typically means that a stent is being inserted. When a patient did not have serious signals of a heart attack, 12 percent of angioplasty operations were deemed medically unnecessary. While a stent can indeed help people who have a severe risk of heart attack, it will only lessen chest pain for other people. Decreased chest pain does not justify the risks of cardiac arrest, stroke, or death in two to six percent of patients who undergo this surgery.
Again from the Journal of the American Medical Association, as many as 22.5 percent of all
cardiac pacemakers were not medically necessitated. This was after the study looked at 112,000 patients who received an implantable cardioverter-defibrillator (ICD) for irregular heartbeats. This only confirms what the
New England Journal of Medicine reported in its 1988 study saying that 20 percent of all patients getting this procedure done did not have a medical need for a pacemaker (they examined three hundred and eighty-two implants in hospitals in and around Philadelphia.).
The Surgical Neurology International published a recent study that looked at 274 patients that underwent
back surgery. In 17 percent of those cases, patients did not have any abnormal neurological or radiographic results that would justify such an intense operation. According Consumer Reports back in 2005, there has been a jump to more than 300,000 annual surgeries for lower back pain as compared to 190,000 such surgeries in the 1980s, and this finding included the comment that a good deal of these operations are likely not needed.
Researchers from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists agreed that a majority of hysterectomies are unneeded. They examined 497 cases of this surgery that removes the uterus. Researchers concluded that in nearly 70 percent of these cases, the surgery should not have been suggested. This was usually because doctors should have first attempted a procedure that did not require surgery. While the surgery was often recommended in cases where patients suffered pelvic pain or bleeding, benign tumors, hormonal imbalances, etc., a much less severe treatment could have sufficed, such as treatment that lowers estrogen levels, or surgery that only removes fibroids.
Last year, Health Affairs published their findings when researchers gave patients further information about alternatives to
knee and hip replacement. When thus informed about the different treatments available, 26 percent fewer patients elected to go ahead with a hip replacement. Thirty-eight percent fewer patients chose knee replacement.
Again from Health Affairs, a study published this year examined 593 hospitals across the county. It found that the rates of
cesarean sections varied wildly, from 7.1 percent to 69.9 percent. The rate among lower-risk pregnancies had worse variation, with rates that could be anywhere from 2.4 percent to 36.5 percent. The rate of these surgeries does not reflect the amount of medical need, only the types of doctors recommending the procedure. The study decided that there was a "costly overuse of cesarean delivery".
Some investigators suggest a few tactics to avoid unnecessary surgeries, the first of which is asking your physician the right questions. You want to know about the risks, the risks of not undergoing the surgery, and you should ask after any non-surgical alternatives. And not only should you research the recommended surgery for yourself, but you should also look into the doctor's history with the surgery too. Then you want to examine information about possible non-surgical alternatives as well. Finally, it cannot hurt to get a second opinion. Usually speaking, delaying the procedure will have no effect.
Unfortunately, not only do unnecessary procedures rack up unnecessary medical bills, but they mean that a patient runs unnecessary risks. If you or a loved one were injured in a surgery that was not medically justified, then you may want to consult a medical malpractice attorney to learn how strong your case is. You can start looking through our directory today to find the legal expertise you need before your case expires.