ASC market continues to expand

We all know the following is true, but more numbers never hurt. A new study has concluded that the ambulatory surgery center market has been flourishing, almost doubling its volume of procedures since 1996.

According to the report, published by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there were 57.1 million surgical and non-surgical procedures performed during 34.7 million ambulatory surgery center visits in 2006. That's up from only 31.5 million in 1996, and just 380,000 in 1983.

The CDC drew its data from 142 hospitals and 295 free-standing ASCs, excluding facilities specializing in abortions, birthing, dentistry, family planning and podiatry.

Top procedures performed at the ASCs include endoscopy of the large intestine, with 5.8 million procedures; endoscopy of the small intestine, with 3.5 million procedures and extraction of the lens for cataract surgery, with 3.1 million procedures.

To find out more about these trends:
- read this Modern Healthcare article (reg. req.)

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