These Are the Top Five Procedures Performed on Hospital Patients

AHRQ News and Numbers

Release date: August 2, 2005

According to the Federal Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the top five procedures performed on hospital patients in 2003, were:

• Cesarean section (C-section)
  • 1.2 million procedures.
  • $14.6 billion in total charges.
• Upper GI endoscopy for diagnosing ulcers, stomach cancer, and other problems
  • 712,000 procedures.
  • $14.5 billion in total charges.
• Catheterization to diagnose heart problems
  • 707,000 procedures.
  • $17.3 billion in total charges.
• Respiratory intubation and mechanical ventilation (artificial respiration)
  • 617,000 procedures.
  • $35.4 billion in total charges.
• Angioplasty to widen plaque-narrowed arteries in the heart
  • 676,000 procedures.
  • $26.5 billion in total charges.

The total charge statistics reflect what hospitals charged for patient stays involving the above-cited principal procedures. They do not include physician fees.

Internet Citation:

These Are the Top Five Procedures Performed on Hospital Patients. AHRQ News and Numbers, August 2, 2005. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Rockville, MD. http://www.ahrq.gov/news/nn/nn080205.htm