Conclusion
1. OTOs accounted for 2.1% of head & neck diagnostic ultrasounds
performed on
Medicare beneficiaries in 2015.
2. Non-radiology point-of-care HNUS appears to have little impact on DR
volume
over the years 2012-2015.
3. A greater proportion of OTOs than DRs (10.5% vs 4.5%) are
”super-users”,
performing more than 100 exams/year.
4. When seeking a surgeon, patients are 3.5 times more likely to have
access to
point-of-care HNUS by visiting an otolaryngologist than a general
surgeon.