Costs of overtreating patients - Los Angeles Times

DOCTORS ARE frequently criticized for the things they fail to do. In general, they don't spend enough time on patient education, don't provide adequate preventive care and don't treat many chronic disorders aggressively enough.

These shortcomings are well-documented. An equally important problem that attracts less attention, however, is doctors who do too much. Whether it's ordering an unnecessary test or advocating an aggressive form of treatment over one that's more measured, the result is the same. Patients wind up getting more than they need.