Evidence-Based Preventive Items and Services

The following items and services that have been given evidence-based "A" or "B" rankings by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force as of 12/9/09.   

• Screening for high blood pressure in adults aged 18 and older.
• Screening of all adults for tobacco use and provision of tobacco cessation interventions for those who use tobacco products. For pregnant women who smoke, provision of augmented pregnancy-tailored counseling.
• Use of daily low-dose aspirin for men age 45 to 79 years and women age 55 to 79 years when the potential benefit due to a reduction in myocardial infarctions outweighs the potential harm due to an increase in gastrointestinal hemorrhage.
• Screening for cervical cancer in women who have been sexually active and have a cervix.
• Screening for colorectal cancer using fecal occult blood testing, sigmoidoscopy, or colonoscopy, in adults, beginning at age 50 years and continuing until age 75 years.
• Screening men aged 20 to 35 who are at increased risk for coronary heart disease, and all men 35 and older for lipid (cholesterol) disorders.
• Intensive behavioral dietary counseling for adult patients with high cholesterol and other known risk factors for cardiovascular and diet-related chronic disease.
• Screening for type 2 diabetes in asymptomatic adults with sustained blood pressure (either treated or untreated) greater than 135/80 mm Hg.
• Screening of all adult patients for obesity and the offering of intensive counseling and behavioral interventions to promote sustained weight loss for obese adults.
• Screenings for the following for pregnant women at first prenatal visit:
• Hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection
• Asymptomatic bacteriuria with urine culture (at12 to 16 weeks' gestation or at the first prenatal visit, if later)
• Routine screening for iron deficiency anemia in asymptomatic pregnant women.
• Screening and behavioral counseling interventions to reduce alcohol misuse  by adults, including pregnant women.
• Screening for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) all adolescents and adults at increased risk for HIV infection.
• High-intensity behavioral counseling to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STIs) for all sexually active adolescents and for adults at increased risk for STIs.
• Screening all pregnant women and persons at increased risk for syphilis infection.
• Screening all sexually active and/or pregnant young women aged 24 and younger for chlamydial infection; also older women who are at increased risk.
• Screening of all sexually active women, including those who are pregnant, for gonorrhea infection if they are at increased risk for infection.
• Interventions during pregnancy and after birth to promote and support breastfeeding.
• Screening for hearing loss in all newborn infants.
• Screening to detect amblyopia, strabismus, and defects in visual acuity in children younger than age 5 years.
• Genetic risk assessment and BRCA mutation testing for breast and ovarian cancer susceptibility.
• Routine screening for osteoporosis in women aged 65 and older. Such screening should begin at age 60 for women at increased risk for osteoporotic fractures.
• Biennial screening mammography for women aged 50 to 74 years.
• Discussion of the risks and benefits chemoprevention with women at high risk for breast cancer and at low risk for adverse effects of chemoprevention.
• One-time screening for abdominal aortic aneurysm by ultrasonography in men aged 65 to 75 who have ever smoked.

Source: U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality website, http://www.ahrq.gov/CLINIC/cps3dix.htm#cance.