AAFP suggests physicians, patients question 10 treatments

by: Karen Long Mar 7, 2013

Be ready for some questions from patients about treatments your physicians might recommend.

The American Academy of Family Physicians (AAFP) compiled a list of 10 treatments or tests that are not beneficial and could be detrimental to a patient’s health in certain cases. The list is part of the “Choosing Wisely” campaign of the ABIM Foundation.

For example, the list recommends against routinely prescribing antibiotics for acute mild-to-moderate sinusitis unless symptoms last longer than seven days or worsen after initial clinical improvement. More than 80% of patients receive antibiotic prescriptions as part of 16 million office visits for sinusitis. The condition costs $5.8 billion in annual health care costs, according to the list.

Another recommendation is against screening women older than 65 for cervical cancer if they have had adequate prior screening and are not at high risk for the disease. Those screenings provide “little to no benefit,” the list states.

Along with the AAFP list, several other specialty societies compiled their recommendations, including the American College of Cardiology, American Geriatrics Society and the American College of Physicians.

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