High Priority: Yes; Appropriate Use
Percentage of patients age 16 years and older with a new onset diagnosis of Bell’s palsy within the past 3 months who
had a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) or a computed tomography scan (CT) of the internal auditory canal, head, neck
or brain ordered for the primary diagnosis of Bell’s palsy.
Denominator:
All patients age 16 years and older with a diagnosis of new onset Bell’s palsy within the past 3 months.
Denominator Exclusions:
None
Denominator Exceptions:
Medical reason for ordering an MRI or CT scan of the internal auditory canal, head, neck or brain for the primary diagnosis of Bell’s palsy, including:
• Patient with diagnosis of Bell’s palsy more than 3 months prior to the date of the referral or performance of
imaging with no signs of recovery.
• Patient with recurrent diagnosis of Bell’s palsy.
• Patient with paralysis limited to a specific branch, or branches, of the facial nerve.
• Patients with paralysis associated with other cranial nerve abnormalities, including olfactory nerve,
glossopharyngeal nerve, vagus nerve, and hypoglossal nerve.
• Patient with other diagnosed neurological abnormalities, including simultaneous sudden hearing loss, tinnitus,
and/or dizziness; stroke; tumor; seizures; extremity weakness; and/or extremity hypesthesia.
Numerator:
Patients with whom a MRI or CT scan of the internal auditory canal, head, neck, or brain was ordered for a primary
diagnosis of Bell’s palsy.
Measure Classifications:
- Measure Type: Process
- National Quality Strategy (NQS) domain: Efficiency and Cost Reduction
- Meaningful Measure Area: Appropriate Use of Healthcare
- Calculation: 1st Performance Rate
- Inverse measure: Yes
- Continuous measure: No
- Proportional measure: Yes
- Ratio measure: No
- Risk Adjusted measure: No
