Re: Am I supposed to ask questions about baby?

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I will play Devil's Advocate here. Anytime a parent is told there might be a problem with their child, whether unborn or not, they want to find out as much as possible about that problem. Sometimes, especially with a fetus, there is a limit to what we can know at a particular time. I am occasionally in a situation with an understandably and appropriatly concerned patient, where the "what ifs" begin to compound, and before I know it, we are vary far afield from where we started, and I "have said too much".

The "what if" game goes like this. What if #1 has a 1/4 chance of occuring. If it were to occur, then what if #2 has a 1/4 chance of occuring. OK, thats not so bad, that is still a 6% possibility. But then we add what if #3, also a 1/4 chance. Now we are down to a 1% possibility. If this goes on much further, the probabilities are so remote as to be ridiculous, and can totally obscure the real issues that are going on.

For example: I saw a patient nearing term, and noted that her blood pressure was slightly elevated over her baseline, with no other evidence of toxemia. I told her about the blood pressure, made some recomendations about rest and diet, and told her I wanted to see her again the next day. She questioned me about toxemia, and we talked about it for a while, and then we began to play the "what if" game. After a few minutes, I found that we were talking about the death of the fetus and kidney transplants, both extremely remote possible complications of a disease that she probably didn't even have. This eventually wound down, and the patient left. Two hours later, I got a call from her brother who wanted to know if he was a possible kidney doner for his sister.

The point is that you can and should ask all the questions that you want (after all that is what you are paying me for), but be careful about the "what if" game. It can seriously distort your perception about what is going on with your pregnancy, distortions even more profound than complete ignorance.

--
William D. McIntosh, MD
Clarksville, TN

This is for educational purposes only.  It is not intended
 to replace consultation and examination by your physician
 or other health care provider.

• Next message: Noelle: "Re: Am I supposed to ask questions about baby?"
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• In reply to: Cindy: "Am I supposed to ask questions about baby?"
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• Reply: Noelle: "Re: Am I supposed to ask questions about baby?"