title: [Pain: thought about risks and benefits of imaging test in primary care].
abstract: In 2007, the budget of medical imaging in Belgium was of more than 920,000,000 Euro. A small part of this amount is attributed to prescription by general practitioners. The yearly costs of medical imaging generated by an individual general practitioner is approximately of 12,000 Euro. Pain is one of the most frequent clinical condition for which imaging tests are requested. The effectiveness of imaging in diagnosing acute painful disorders is well established. However, in case of subacute or chronic pain, the benefits of imaging tests are reduced or not clearly defined. The objective of this review is to highlight the balance between benefit, costs and risks (i.e. radiation risk) of imaging tests in case of acute, subacute and chronic pain. Four of the most frequently encountered clinical conditions illustrate this review.
authors.affiliation: D.M.G.-U.L.B., Services de Radiologie. nkacenel@ulb.ac.be
authors.forename: N
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Kacenelenbogen
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Tack
mesh_terms: D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D010146:Pain / Q000503:physiopathology*; D010361:Patients / Q000523:psychology*; D011320:Primary Health Care / Q000379:methods*; D011839:Radiation, Ionizing; D018570:Risk Assessment