Awareness can prompt the search for clinical zebras

[摘要] I recently read a book of personal reflections on approaching patient care by Roger Cass, an experienced internist/rheumatologist, Diagnosis: Clinical Skills In Medicine.1 On the heels of that, reading the short paper by Mandzhieva et al2 and the commentary by Rodriguez3 in this issue of the Journal on the median arcuate ligament syndrome (MALS) prompted me to consider the process by which I evaluate patients with certain symptoms. What distinguishes insightful quick diagnosis from premature closure (other than that the diagnosis turns out to be incorrect in the latter).

[学科分类] 卫生学