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. 1993 Dec;83(12):1762–1764. doi: 10.2105/ajph.83.12.1762

Inappropriate Halsted mastectomy and patient volume in Italian hospitals.

R Grilli 1, F Mainini 1, A Penna 1, G Bertolini 1, N Scorpiglione 1, V Torri 1, A Liberati 1
PMCID: PMC1694942  PMID: 8259814

Abstract

To study whether Halsted mastectomy was used only when properly indicated, a prospective survey was undertaken on the process of care of 985 breast cancer patients seen consecutively at 62 general hospitals in Northern and Central Italy. Overall, 79% of Halsted mastectomies were performed inappropriately. The procedure was less likely to be performed on more educated patients and, other factors considered, on those seen at hospitals with larger volume. We conclude that the measurement of utilization of a surgical procedure for which only a few appropriate indications exist may help identify important relationships between hospital characteristics and quality of surgical care.

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Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

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