ACR Appropriateness Criteria Update Adds Three New Imaging Topics

April 3, 2017 — The newest release of American College of Radiology (ACR) Appropriateness Criteria covers 230 topics with more than 1,100 clinical indications.

These continuously reviewed evidence-based guidelines help healthcare providers choose the most appropriate medical imaging exam for a specific clinical condition. The latest update includes three new topics and five revised topics.

“For nearly 25 years, ACR Appropriateness Criteria have been refined and improved, providing standardized and effective care for patients,” said E. Kent Yucel, M.D., FACR, chair of the ACR Committee on Diagnostic Imaging and Interventional Radiology Appropriateness Criteria. “They are valuable guidelines for improving patient outcomes,” he noted.

New topics in the latest release of the guidelines include:

• Monitoring Response to Neoadjuvant Systemic Therapy for Breast Cancer; 
• Penetrating Neck Injury; and 
• Thoracic Aorta Interventional Planning and Follow-up. 

Revised topics include:

• Cranial Neuropathy; 
• Imaging After Total Knee Arthroplasty;
• Radiologic Management of Iliac Artery Occlusive Disease; 
• Renovascular Hypertension; and
• Sinonasal Disease. 

The guidelines are specified appropriate use criteria (AUC) under the Protecting Access to Medicare Act (PAMA) legislation and are developed by expert panels of radiologists and other doctors from relevant medical specialties. The ACR is designated by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) as a qualified Provider-Led Entity. Medical providers may consult the ACR Appropriateness Criteria to fulfill PAMA requirements that they consult AUC prior to ordering advanced diagnostic imaging for Medicare patients.

The updated guidelines can be read in full here.

Watch the VIDEO "Clinical Decision Support Requirements for Cardiac Imaging," a discussion with Rami Doukky, M.D., system chair, Division of Cardiology, professor of medicine, Cook County Health and Hospitals System, Chicago, discusses the new CMS requirements for clinical decision support (CDS) appropriate use criteria (AUC) documentation in cardiac imaging starting on Jan. 1, 2018. He spoke at the 2017 American Society of Nuclear Cardiology (ASNC) Today meeting.

For more information: www.acr.org