title: Improving Appropriateness and Quality in Cardiovascular Imaging: A Review of the Evidence.
abstract: High-quality cardiovascular imaging requires a structured process to ensure appropriate patient selection, accurate and reproducible data acquisition, and timely reporting which answers clinical questions and improves patient outcomes. Several guidelines provide frameworks to assess quality. This article reviews interventions to improve quality in cardiovascular imaging, including methods to reduce inappropriate testing, improve accuracy, reduce interobserver variability, and reduce diagnostic and reporting errors.
authors.affiliation: From the Echocardiography Laboratory, Barts Heart Centre, St Bartholomew's Hospital London, UK; and Institute of Cardiovascular Science, UCL, London, UK. Sanjeev.Bhattacharyya@bartshealth.nhs.uk.
authors.forename: Sanjeev
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Bhattacharyya
authors.affiliation: From the Echocardiography Laboratory, Barts Heart Centre, St Bartholomew's Hospital London, UK; and Institute of Cardiovascular Science, UCL, London, UK.
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Lloyd
mesh_terms: D002318:Cardiovascular Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000628:therapy; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003951:Diagnostic Errors / Q000517:prevention & control*; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000592:standards*; D019317:Evidence-Based Medicine; D019983:Guideline Adherence; D006801:Humans; D059032:Learning Curve; D015588:Observer Variation; D018579:Patient Selection; D017410:Practice Guidelines as Topic; D010818:Practice Patterns, Physicians'; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011379:Prognosis; D019984:Quality Indicators, Health Care / Q000592:standards*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D019564:Unnecessary Procedures / Q000592:standards*
keywords: appropriateness criteria; cardiovascular imaging; echocardiography; quality; variability