Utilization of percutaneous transluminal coronary angioplasty for quality assurance in health care from 1983 to 1996.
OBJECTIVE
To examine the distribution of interventional cardiac catheterization laboratories, their case load, the time trends, and the regional variation of percutaneous transluminal cutaneous angioplasty (PTCA) utilization in Italy.


METHODS
Analysis of data was provided by the annual reports of the Italian Group of Studies and Interventional Cardiology over the period from 1983 to 1996.


RESULTS
The number of PTCA facilities and their use steadily increased, mainly in the North. In 1996 the utilization rate was 34 per 100,000 population, but only 60% of labs performed 200 or more procedures.


CONCLUSIONS
Dramatic time trends and regional variations often took place without an epidemiology and technology assessment-based planning process.
Mariotto
A
A
Zeni
L
L
Selle
V
V
Favaretti
C
C
D015906:Angioplasty, Balloon, Coronary / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D006801:Humans; D007558:Italy; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D011785:Quality Assurance, Health Care