Althouse: "I was raised that if a doctor tells you something, it’s gospel, like the priests..."

March 30, 2013

"I was raised that if a doctor tells you something, it’s gospel, like the priests..."

"... They know better than we do. Now if I suspect something, I’m definitely more proactive."

About the doctors... or the priests?

23 comments:

Unknown said...: This seems to be a case that was outside of the norm. It's too bad, and I feel sorry for all the years of pain, but it's not like doctors are miracle workers.
By all means patients should question and seek answers if they are not getting the help they need. But, soon it won't matter what the doctor thinks, it will only matter what a clerk in a government office thinks.; 3/30/13, 9:38 AM
Phil 314 said...: Incidence of persistent symptoms after laparoscopic cholecystectomy: a prospective study.
Gut. 1996 December; 39(6): 863–866.

CONCLUSIONS: The incidence of persistent pain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy was 13%. Abdominal bloating and psychiatric medications were predictive for persistence of pain after laparoscopic cholecystectomy.; 3/30/13, 9:39 AM
Anonymous said...: With the upper right quadrant pain, so persistent and with the stong history of familial gallbladder disease, she and her mother should've screamed bloody hell until she had complete testing done for any and all gallbladder related disease. Often a patient's instincts are right. Don't be an arrogant healthcare provider.

Be your own best healthcare advocate.; 3/30/13, 9:46 AM
Mel said...: I don't take anything that doctors or priests/pastors say as gospel. I trust my doctor more than most - not least because she found my celiac disease - but I know she's human and capable of mistakes.
If a priest/pastor says something I know to be contrary to Scripture, then I definitely don't take it as gospel. And I spend enough time reading the Bible to know when they are speaking contrary to it.
That said, the doctors who didn't consider the early age history of gall bladder disease definitely did this girl a disservice. And that makes me sad...I know about making yourself sick nearly every time you eat.; 3/30/13, 9:47 AM
Big Mike said...: They do know a lot -- they are smart to begin with, and then take three years of additional education at med school, plus internships and residency.

But they don't know everything. If your doctor won't accept your self-advocacy then find one who will.; 3/30/13, 10:00 AM
Sydney said...: I may have overlooked it, but it doesn't say anywhere in the Rticle where her pain was. If it was referred to an unusual place instead of the right upper abdomen or right shoulder, the oversight is understandable. I had a patient with midsternal chest pain for years with recurrent negative gastrointestinal and cardiac work ups that ended up being gallbladder. As I recall, the gallbladder investigation was his suggestion.; 3/30/13, 10:02 AM
SomeoneHasToSayIt said...: Looking just at their "knowledge" of nutrition facts, I would say there is MUCH to always be suspect about, concerning doctors.; 3/30/13, 10:02 AM
Sydney said...: That should be "article" not "Rticle"; 3/30/13, 10:03 AM
Anonymous said...: Sydney, the article states right upper quadrant. Look at the first paragraph after " Shooting Pains".; 3/30/13, 10:12 AM
Phil 314 said...: 18% of patients have persistent pain after a lap chole.

Hopefully, she won't be one of them.; 3/30/13, 10:22 AM
William said...: De Nile is a river that doesn't just run though rehab centers. Post aha moment, most solutions appear obvious.....The bright side is that she had an illness that was ultimately manageable. There are diseases that leave you in intractable pain, and they eventually drive you to suicide.; 3/30/13, 10:25 AM
DADvocate said...: Reminds me of a case with my late father-in-law. He was having stomach pains and went to the ER in the local hospital. They diagnosed it as ulcers, gave him some medicine and sent him home.

After a few hours he felt no better, so we called a doctor he used in Lexington and them I drove him to St Joesph's hospital in Lexington. Within 15 minutes they diagnosed him as having acute pancreatitis. He probably would have died if we would have waited much longer to seek further treatment.

A year later, nearly to the day, the pains came back. Took him to the same local hospital ER. Despite my now ex-wife standing there telling the doctor to check for acute pancreatitis, the doctor insisted it was ulcers, gave him some medicine and sent him home. We didn't wait this time, but immediately contacted the doctor in Lexington and took him to St. Joe's. And, yep, it was acute pancreatitis.; 3/30/13, 10:27 AM
Phil 314 said...: Laparoscopic cholecystectomy for gallbladder dyskinesia: clinical outcome and patient satisfaction. JTabet, M Anvari Department of Surgery, St. Joseph's Hospital, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. The clinical outcome of laparoscopic cholecystectomy in 63 patients with gallbladder dyskinesia (GD) and 60 patients with proven gallstone (GS) disease was compared. Patients were contacted to determine the extent of symptom relief and satisfaction after surgery. Patients with GD underwent significantly more diagnostic procedures than patients with GS and were found to have higher prevalence of other gastrointestinal motor disorders. Only 47% of patients with GD became completely asymptomatic after surgery, compared with 81% of patients with GS (p = 0.002). This was reflected in the satisfaction scores, which were 79% and 91%, respectively (p < 0.01). There was a significant difference in pathologic findings among the two groups; chronic cholecystitis was more frequently found in the GS group and the incidence of normal gallbladder was higher in the GD group. It is concluded that patients with GD have a good response to laparoscopic cholecystectomy, but they commonly experience continuing gastrointestinal symptoms related to other gastrointestinal motor disorders.; 3/30/13, 10:30 AM
traditionalguy said...: The skill sets of MDs vary as do the skill sets of lawyers. For some reason, being raised Jewish also seems to help a man become a smart one.

You need to get a referral from others who know an MDs history and reputation. Same as with a lawyer.

In both Professions the fees will be high and the matters entrusted will be great .And a smart doctor, as a smart lawyer, is worth finding. But computers will not help find the good ones. Only personal testimony will help you find them.; 3/30/13, 10:40 AM
Michael K said...: The problem with biliary dyskinesia is that it was used a lot to do cholecystectomies on normal gallbladders in women with a lot of complaints. It acquired a bad reputation, something like "chronic appendicitis." After my sister had her appendix out when she was in her 20s, my scorn for the surgeon vanished when she never had another pain.

This story is a bit prolonged, no doubt because these doctors are devoted to "evidence based medicine" which will rule Obamacare. Biliary dyskinesia is still controversial.; 3/30/13, 11:06 AM
Bender said...: Yeah, about that gratuitous bigoted slam at priests by Hatman, oh, excuse me, by the Professor, it just goes to show you how deluded irrational animus can make someone.

In fact, merely a cursory glance at our contemporary culture will tell you that the last person that people listen to is priests.

And a far greater problem than people who accept doctors as gods is the countless people who take whatever the teacher says as gospel truth. We have entire institutions set up to feed the most nonsensical crap to students and they eat it up, "well, if the teacher said it, it must be true."; 3/30/13, 11:28 AM
Michelle Dulak Thomson said...: What is a college student doing still seeing a pediatrician, anyway? I mean, I realize that under PPACA everyone is now officially a "child" up to age 26, but this seems silly.; 3/30/13, 11:32 AM
Sam L. said...: Cain't trust nobody no more!; 3/30/13, 12:20 PM
Baron Zemo said...: Always good to give the priests a gratuitous slap on Holy Saturday.

You are rapidly becoming the Nicki Minaj of the internet.; 3/30/13, 1:54 PM
Anonymous said...: It's not a fair comparison because docs are so overburdened with patients now.

I was going through my childhood medical records. My nice Jewish pediatrician correctly diagnosed what I would have problems with when I was in my 20s WHEN I WAS 7 YEARS OLD. Why? Beyond his training, he knew my personality and that of my entire family. He knew how I fit into the context and he could extrapolate.

What doctor really has the time to know all that now? I've correctly diagnosed my mom three times before her doctors (who are, for the most part, good doctors) because I know her and I know what's going on in her life.; 3/30/13, 2:39 PM
ken in tx said...: I am married to a doctor. Even before I married her, I knew not to take a doctor’s word as gospel truth. I used to seek out physicians assistants and nurse practitioners because they were more amenable to paying attention to what I really needed. Doctors are on a pedestal.; 3/30/13, 4:05 PM
Fr Martin Fox said...: I'm glad the woman is doing better, and I hope she does better still.

The article said she's 22 years old, correct?

The "father knows best" mindset toward priests is not well documented in her lifetime. I'm 51, and it wasn't part of my upbringing. It likely belongs to her grandmother's time, assuming the 50s were really the way folks (so often with an axe to grind) always insist.; 3/30/13, 5:00 PM
K in Texas said...: A person knows better than a doctor when something in your body has changed and something is physically wrong. It took 20 years for my wife to get correctly diagnosed with MS. I had often read that some doctors did not take women's complaints as seriously as men's. My wife was told: you need counseling; its all in your head; nothing is wrong with you (unless the doctor observed the symptom it didn't happen). I finally started going with my wife to her doctor visits and tell the doctor, the tremor or pain, or walking problem, may not be apparent know, but it did happen, these symptoms are happening every 2 or 3 months, they are bad for 2 weeks then get better. Classic MS pattern for relapsing remitting MS.

All it finally took was for ONE doctor to believe us and order a brain MRI which showed 25 plus plaque lesions.

Bottom line, you need to be your own advocate with the doctors. You know your own body better than anyone else.; 3/31/13, 10:17 AM