Lack of Awareness May Impact Interventional Radiology Utilization, Even Though It's Often Preferred by Patients
A new study published in the Journal of Vascular and Interventional Radiology reports that patients are often unaware of interventional radiology as a medical specialty, which may account for the underutilization of minimally-invasive interventional procedures. Of the 1,000 participants surveyed, less than 40% identified interventional radiology as a medical specialty, and 44% believed interventional radiologists to be physicians.
“Interventional radiology is an important area of research, given the limited data available and this work represents one of most comprehensive studies evaluating the public's awareness of the specialty of interventional radiology,” says senior author Mina Makary, MD, DABR, director of interventional radiology inpatient service at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, in an email with Applied Radiology. “A lack of interventional radiology awareness may underlie underutilization. When presented with the knowledge that interventional radiology improves patient outcomes, minimally-invasive procedures with an Interventional Radiologist are more often desired by the public over surgical options. Educational videos and patient education by PCPs may increase interventional radiology awareness.”
Once participants were provided information that interventional radiologists perform minimally-invasive procedures, 86.5% believed the procedures would reduce both adverse events and mortality compared to surgery. Nearly 92% of the respondents said they would prefer the minimally-invasive procedure over surgery. Only 11.3% of the survey participants had previously undergone an interventional radiology procedure.
“Even though traditional surgeries often increase the risk of adverse outcomes compared to interventional radiology procedures, patients may be more inclined to undergo them due to an increased familiarity with surgical specialties,” Dr Makary adds. “There is also evidence to suggest referring physicians will often direct their patients to surgeons rather than interventional radiologists to treat the same pathology because of a poor understanding of interventional radiology.”
Dr Makary was lead author in a 2019 study that examined other physicians’ awareness of interventional radiology and the type of treatments provided. That landmark study highlighted the need to increase awareness of interventional radiology and its benefits to other providers, and also sparked a national conversation, according to Dr Makary.
In the current study, the authors note that the low awareness of interventional radiology among primary care physicians (PCPs) exacerbates low referral rates. They recommend a greater focus on educating PCPs, particularly in peripheral artery and venous disease, BPH and chronic pain that interventional radiologists commonly treat. More than 90% of the participants would be more likely to undergo an interventional radiology procedure with a PCP referral. There is also a need for a stronger online presence for interventional radiology, as most participants reported using the internet to search for medically related information.
“Unfortunately, there is lack of awareness/under-awareness of interventional radiology procedures by both referring physicians and the public/patients,” says Dr Makary. “This is of concern as these interventions are often cutting-edge providing minimally-invasive treatment, quicker recovery, less risk of complications, and better quality of life than many of the traditional and open surgical options.”