Abstract
Objective: To estimate the frequency of recorded screening for skin cancer in primary care settings. Design: Retrospective observational cohort study. Setting: Two academically affiliated Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Centers. Subjects: Two hundred randomly selected patients at least 50 years old and receiving care at outpatient medical clinics. Main Outcome Measure: Frequency of documented skin examinations, in comparison with other tests routinely done as screening, during a 2-year period. Methods: Medical record review to identify how often selected components of the physical examination and specific procedures were documented during ambulatory visits. Results: Among the 200 subjects, the frequency of documented examinations and procedures included fecal occult blood testing in 120 (60%), rectal examination in 128 (64%), and sigmoidoscopy in 93 (47%); prostate examination was performed in 114 (59%) of 193 men. In contrast, skin examination was documented in only 56 (28%) of 200 subjects (P<.001 for each comparison with other tests). As an estimate of the 'true' frequency of screening for skin cancer, 35 (18%) of 165 patients without skin-related complaints had a documented skin examination. Conclusion: Skin cancer screening is infrequently documented and therefore possibly omitted in the context of primary care visits.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 1423-1425 |
Number of pages | 3 |
Journal | Archives of dermatology |
Volume | 133 |
Issue number | 11 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 1997 |
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Dermatology