Elsevier

Dental Abstracts

Volume 60, Issue 6, November–December 2015, Pages 284-285
Dental Abstracts

Commentary
Incidental findings

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.denabs.2015.03.002Get rights and content

Section snippets

Background

The 2013 Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues report notes that it is likely that incidental findings will increase because more large-scale and bundled diagnostic testing is being done. As a result, clinicians will increasingly have the responsibility for developing a plan for disclosing incidental findings, determining if patients want to hear about them, determining if patients should hear about them, and respecting the decision of patients to receive or not receive

Defining Incidental Findings

The Presidential Commission report defines incidental findings as those that arise beyond the original purpose of the test or procedure. Some can be anticipated but others cannot. This definition does not set forth specific criteria that can be used to identify incidental findings, does not include a list of incidental findings, does not identify the context of incidental findings, and does not specify to whom and under what circumstances a finding is incidental. Therefore clinicians are left

Informed Consent and Compliance

The Commission recommends that the clinician make the patient aware that incidental findings are possible and provide an informed consent form that ensures his or her right not to know about certain findings. This would require the inclusion of a provision that lets the patient “opt in” or “opt out” of being informed of incidental findings after imaging or testing. Patients who opt out would not be informed of a perceived incidental finding. However, whether the patient is sufficiently educated

Respecting Patient Autonomy in Decision Making

In some ways the Commission’s report allows patients to opt out of learning more about their own health. This is counter to the progress being made toward fully involving patients in their health care decisions. Educating patients so that they will want to know more about their health seems a better approach in light of the goal of making patients fully participating members in the decision process.

Clinical Significance

Dentists can defer care or refer patients who do not want to be informed

References (0)

Cited by (0)

Miller CS: Incidentally. Oral Surg Oral Med Oral Pathol Oral Radiol 119:127-129, 2015

Reprints available from CS Miller, Dept of Oral Health Practice, Univ of Kentucky College of Dentistry, 800 Rose St, Lexington, KY 40536-0297; e-mail [email protected]

View full text