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Financial and medicolegal implications of focused/fast abdominopelvic MRI exams

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Abstract

Purpose

Abbreviated MRI offers significant advantages in terms of MRI throughput, patient tolerance and expediency, and is being utilized for a variety of abdominopelvic imaging applications. However questions abound with respect to financial and medicolegal treatment of these relatively new protocols.

Methods

A review of the relevant literature was performed.

Results

There is no Current Procedural Terminology code for a “limited” MRI study, but it may not be appropriate to bill an abbreviated study the same as a more comprehensive study. With respect to medicolegal concerns, the risk of liability when missing or misinterpreting medically significant findings due to use of an abbreviated scan will turn on whether abbreviated MRI has become the standard of care.

Conclusion

In light of these ambiguities, it would behoove abdominopelvic imagers to advocate for their professional and subspecialty organizations to issue practice parameters/guidelines with respect to the utilization of abbreviated MRI protocols, and for the subspecialty to bill these abbreviated scans at objectively reasonable rates.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Biomedical Imaging, Yale School of Medicine, 333 Cedar Street, TE2, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA

    Jonathan L. Mezrich & Jeffrey C. Weinreb

Authors
  1. Jonathan L. Mezrich
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  2. Jeffrey C. Weinreb
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Contributions

Each author substantially contributed to the conception and design of this work, the writing and revision of this manuscript, approved the final version of the manuscript and is accountable for the manuscript’s contents.

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Correspondence to Jonathan L. Mezrich.

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The authors have no disclosures with respect to this manuscript. The authors declare no conflict of interest.

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Mezrich, J.L., Weinreb, J.C. Financial and medicolegal implications of focused/fast abdominopelvic MRI exams. Abdom Radiol 47, 471–474 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00261-021-03328-w

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00261-021-03328-w

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