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Pediatric Hematology/Oncology • Medical Oncology • General Internal Medicine • Hematology • Chronic kidney disease • Nephrology • Primary Care • General Primary Care
How do you approach patients who are inappropriately worried/fixated on a test result that is flagged as abnormal but not clinically significant?
(i.e., isolated elevation in MCHC, RDW.)
Especially when all other lab results are normal and reassuring.
Answer from: at Community Practice
This is an ever-increasing problem, and we have to explain the difference between "abnormal" (from a reference range standpoint) and "disease".
Practically, this problem reminds us to only order tests we need: and consider ordering individual lab tests rather than "panels".
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Answer from: at Community Practice
This happens all the time now. I tell them that those results were flagged as outside the reference range (I don't use the term abnormal) but that they are not clinically significant.
It does not always work if there is a patient who is super anxious or hyper-focused. Typically, if they need a lot ...
Answer from: at Community Practice
I emphasize that the reference range intentionally excludes normal individuals who are a little different from the average person, and that the reference range is just a numerical exercise and general guidance, not something that was ordained by higher powers. I don't use the analogy for patients, b...