Report Summary

Healthcare Inspection Abdominal Aortic Aneurysm Management in VA Medical Facilities

Report Number 07-00348-49, 12/29/2008 | Full Report (PDF)

The VA Office of Inspector General completed an evaluation to determine whether Veterans Health Administration (VHA) medical facilities had implemented abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA) screening policies and protocols and whether clinicians were managing diagnosed AAAs in accordance with the United States Preventative Service Task Force (USPSTF) recommended guidelines. VHA currently has no policy requiring AAA screening.

We found that despite the lack of VHA guidance, some of the 33 facilities we reviewed had implemented protocols and initiated actions to screen patients for AAAs. In two facilities, radiologists were conducting a retrospective review of abdominal ultrasound studies; in those cases where studies included the aorta, radiologists could comment on the presence or absence of an aneurysm. This finding suggests that if providers consider the need for AAA screening when ordering abdominal imaging studies for other reasons, and expand the scope of those studies to ensure inclusion of the aorta, the need for additional imaging resources could be mitigated.

We recommended that VHA advise clinicians to consider patients’ risk factors for AAA when ordering abdominal imaging studies, and when appropriate expand the scope of studies to include the aorta; also they should develop a plan, within the context of available resources, to implement AAA screening for male smokers 65–75 years old.

12/10/08