Temporal trends in use of tests in UK primary care, 2000-15: retrospective analysis of 250 million tests

AbstractObjectivesTo assess the temporal change in test use in UK primary care and to identify tests with the greatest increase in use.DesignRetrospective cohort study.SettingUK primary care.ParticipantsAll patients registered to UK General Practices in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink, 2000/...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:BMJ (Online) 2018-11, Vol.363, p.k4666-k4666
Main Authors: O’Sullivan, Jack W, Stevens, Sarah, Hobbs, F D Richard, Salisbury, Chris, Little, Paul, Goldacre, Ben, Bankhead, Clare, Aronson, Jeffrey K, Perera, Rafael, Heneghan, Carl
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Adolescent
Adult
Aged
Aged, 80 and over
Child
Child, Preschool
Cohort Studies
Databases, Factual
Diagnostic Techniques and Procedures - trends
Diagnostic tests
Family physicians
Female
Health care expenditures
Humans
Infant
Laboratories
Male
Middle Aged
Patients
Population
Primary care
Primary Health Care - trends
Quality of care
Retrospective Studies
Systematic review
United Kingdom
Young Adult
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Summary:AbstractObjectivesTo assess the temporal change in test use in UK primary care and to identify tests with the greatest increase in use.DesignRetrospective cohort study.SettingUK primary care.ParticipantsAll patients registered to UK General Practices in the Clinical Practice Research Datalink, 2000/1 to 2015/16.Main outcome measuresTemporal trends in test use, and crude and age and sex standardised rates of total test use and of 44 specific tests.Results262 974 099 tests were analysed over 71 436 331 person years. Age and sex adjusted use increased by 8.5% annually (95% confidence interval 7.6% to 9.4%); from 14 869 tests per 10 000 person years in 2000/1 to 49 267 in 2015/16, a 3.3-fold increase. Patients in 2015/16 had on average five tests per year, compared with 1.5 in 2000/1. Test use also increased statistically significantly across all age groups, in both sexes, across all test types (laboratory, imaging, and miscellaneous), and 40 of the 44 tests that were studied specifically.ConclusionTotal test use has increased markedly over time, in both sexes, and across all age groups, test types (laboratory, imaging, and miscellaneous) and for 40 of 44 tests specifically studied. Of the patients who underwent at least one test annually, the proportion who had more than one test increased significantly over time.
ISSN:0959-8138
1756-1833
DOI:10.1136/bmj.k4666