Can Too Much Medicine be a Bad Thing?
Ineffective and harmful medical practices have always been
present, but the scale and institutionalisation of overdiagnosis
and overtreatment have expanded exponentially in the last few
decades.
The concept of ‘ too much medicine’ reflects a growing
concern in the medical community regarding the over- testing,
overdiagnosis and overtreatment of various pathologies. In the
past few decades, the number of people diagnosed with diseases
or risk factors like high blood pressure, cancer and asthma
have dramatically increased, and hence the number of people being
treated for these problems has also increased.
Modern Medicine – February 2018