Table 1.

Mean and Median Counts of Indicators of Overuse Across Regions, 2010 months 1–6 (N = 422 regions)

Overuse Indicator	Per 1000
	Mean	Median	Interquartile Range
Stress echocardiography in symptomatic or ischemic equivalent acute chest paina	52.4	36.6	0.0	–	72.8
Laminectomy or spinal fusion	0.6	0.6	0.4	–	0.8
Hysterectomy for benign disease	3.5	3.3	2.5	–	4.3
Fiberoptic laryngoscopy for sinusitis diagnosisa	2.4	1.6	0.7	–	3.0
Nasal endoscopy for sinusitis diagnosisa	21.3	16.4	9.5	–	28.5
Routine monitoring of digoxin in patients with congestive heart failure	18.7	16.6	9.6	–	23.5
EEG monitoring in individuals presenting with syncopea	59.6	55.3	39.2	–	75.4
Serological tests for Helicobacter pylori	4.2	4.1	2.8	–	5.4
MRI in adults with mild traumatic brain injurya	22.9	20.8	7.5	–	31.3
PET, CT, and radionuclide bone scan in individuals with low-risk prostate cancer	112	105	80.3	–	135
Traction for low back pain	222	216	169	–	271
Screening for asymptomatic carotid artery stenosis in the general adult population	1.3	1.1	0.8	–	1.6
Preoperative chest radiography in the absence of a clinical suspiciona	135	118	89.6	–	165
Tumor marker studies in asymptomatic women with previously treated breast cancer	289	272	165	–	386
Diagnostic tests, such as immunoglobulin testing, in the evaluation of allergya	12.2	10.5	5.9	–	16.7
Sinus CT for uncomplicated acute rhinosinusitisa	1.1	0.9	9.0	–	1.4
MRI lumbar spine for low back paina	491	493	454	–	530
Thorax CT use with and without contrasta	70.2	47.4	22.9	–	94.0
Abdomen CT use with and without contrasta	182	136	90.6	–	259

CT Indicates computed tomography, EEG Electroencephalography, MRI Magnetic resonance imaging, PET Positron emission tomography

^aCount is per 1000 eligible episodes rather than per 1000 beneficiaries