American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases
View all recommendations from this societyReleased June 15, 2014
Don’t repeat hepatitis C viral load testing outside of antiviral therapy.
Highly-sensitive quantitative assays of hepatitis C RNA are appropriate at diagnosis and as part of antiviral therapy. Otherwise, the results of virologic testing do not change clinical management or outcomes.
These items are provided solely for informational purposes and are not intended as a substitute for consultation with a medical professional. Patients with any specific questions about the items on this list or their individual situation should consult their physician.
How The List Was Created
The American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD) established a Choosing Wisely® Task Force in December 2013 to develop its list of recommendations. Members of this group were selected from the AASLD Practice Guidelines Committee to broadly represent varying practice settings and subspecialty expertise within the field of hepatology. Hepatologists with methodological experience in evidence-based medicine were also included. The working group solicited recommendations from the entire AASLD membership that should be considered for inclusion in the list of “Five Things Physicians and Patients Should Question”. These recommendations were then rated based upon judgments related to harm, benefit and excess resource utilization. Based on working group voting and literature review, a total of 10 suggestions were identified with subsequent voting by the working group to generate the final Top Five recommendations. These recommendations were submitted and approved by AASLD Governing Board.
AASLD’s disclosure and conflict of interest policy can be found at www.aasld.org.
Sources
Ghany MG, Strader DB, Thomas DL, Seeff LB; American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. Diagnosis, management,and treatment of hepatitis C: an update. Hepatology. 2009 Apr;49(4):1335–74.
