Published in:
01-12-2021 | Positron Emission Tomography | EDITORIAL
Is cardiac nuclear imaging helpful for the faint of heart?
Authors:
Todd D. Miller, MD, MASNC, J. Wells Askew, MD, FASNC, Win-Kuang Shen, MD
Published in:
Journal of Nuclear Cardiology
|
Issue 6/2021
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Excerpt
Syncope is a common condition with an estimated life-time risk of 40%.
1 It accounts for 1-2% of emergency department visits.
2 The financial burden is high, with a 2005 US hospital cost estimate of $2.4 billion
3 and a 2011 average Medicare billing charge of nearly $20,000 per patient.
4 Prognosis in the majority of patients is benign, but a small percentage have a poor outcome. Mortality rates after discharge from the emergency department or hospital are approximately 1% at one month and 10% at 1 year.
2 …