JAMA : the journal of the American Medical Association
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Medical imaging increased rapidly from 2000 to 2006, but trends in recent years have not been analyzed. ⋯ From 2000 to 2016 in 7 US integrated and mixed-model health care systems and in Ontario, rates of CT and MRI use continued to increase among adults, but at a slower pace in more recent years. In children, imaging rates continued to increase except for CT, which stabilized or declined in more recent periods. Whether the observed imaging utilization was appropriate or was associated with improved patient outcomes is unknown.