Among more than 6 million screening colonoscopies performed annually in the United
States, up to one-third may represent potential overuse.
1
,2
Colorectal cancer (CRC) screening overuse is defined as screening in specific clinical
scenarios that provide no net benefit to individuals, such as screening too frequently
or outside the age of eligibility.
3
,
4
,
5
Colonoscopy overuse is an important problem because it can cause direct patient harm
(eg, 0.3% complication rate leading to hospitalization or death), raise health care
costs, and reduce availability of appropriate endoscopy for other individuals.
3
,6
,7
Minimizing inappropriate colonoscopies will expand access to high-value screening,
which is particularly salient in light of new US Preventative Services Task Force
(USPSTF) guidelines that recommend all individuals age 45-49 engage in CRC screening
in addition to individuals ages 50-75.
8
,9
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Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 24, 2022
Footnotes
Funding: The Melvin & Bren Simon Gastroenterology Quality Improvement Program. All data collection and analysis were performed independently.
Conflicts of Interest: None.
Authorship: All authors had access to the data and a role in writing this manuscript.
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Copyright
Published by Elsevier Inc.
