According to a recent study released Monday, ninety percent of physicians expressed that doctors overtest and overtreat patients to protect themselves from a medical malpractice lawsuit.

The study found that 91 percent of doctors think "defensive medicine" is the norm in the industry. Additionally, 90.7 percent believed that better protection against unwarranted medical malpractice suits is necessary in the industry. Interestingly, these sentiments were more common with male doctors than female doctors. Almost 93 percent of male doctors said they order unnecessary tests because of malpractice fears, versus 87 percent of female physicians.

Some critics believe that overtesting and overtreating patients, due to malpractice fears, is not good practice and ultimately is contributing to the rising cost of health care in the U.S. According to a recent news article, nearly $60 billion is spent on "defensive medicine" each year. Critics say keep treating patients within the standard guidelines of care established by the industry and doctors will avoid suits.

Related, another recent AP story also revealed that emergency room doctors said that the fear of lawsuits were the main reason they overtreat patients in the ER.

The study was conducted by researchers from Mount Sinai School of Medicine in New York City. The national survey included nearly 2,416 U.S. physicians which included ER doctors, specialists, surgeons and primary care doctors from a wide range of practice areas and specialty backgrounds.

The findings were published in the June 28 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

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