July 30, 2012

A Call to End Routine Treadmill Stress Testing

By

On Monday, an expert government panel, the United States Preventive Services Task Force, joined the call by recommending against routine testing with electrocardiograms, or EKGs, in people who have no known risk factors or symptoms of heart disease, like shortness of breath or chest pains…. Todd D. Miller, a cardiologist at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., who has studied the test's effectiveness, said there were plenty of anecdotal reports about the treadmill stress test uncovering undiagnosed cases of heart disease, but no prospective studies bearing that out.  Still, he predicted the test would remain widely used. "It takes a long time to see recommendations implemented in practice, and some of these old habits die hard." he said.

 

NY Times by Anahad  O’Connor

Tags: Cardiology, Dr. Todd Miller, EKG, Mayo Clinic Rochester, NY Times, treadmill stress test, United States Preventive Services Task Force

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