[The concept of utility in decision strategies: application to diagnosis and treatment of renovascular hypertension].

To select a guideline in the management of diagnosis and treatment of renovascular hypertension, the clinician has to take into account many contradictory elements. He has to weight the invasive nature and the relative accuracy of the diagnostic tests, as well as the efficacy and drawbacks of medical and surgical treatments. The concept of utility in a decision making tree may lead to objective determination of best suited management for a given patient, according to the prior probability he had a renovascular hypertension.