Treatment of hypertensive emergencies with oral labetalol.
C. Maidment, R. Davies
Aug 19, 1978
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Journal
British Medical Journal
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Semantic Scholar
Key Takeaway Key Takeaway: Patients often fear routine tests like barium meals, but stressing that these are just routine tests can help reduce their anxiety.
Abstract
down in the patient's notes what has been said. The subject of patients and their investigations also deserves more attention. Dr M Goldman in the same issue (p 1699) describes the information that he sends to patients about barium meals. He is correct that a barium meal may worry someone far more than a highly complex investigation. I am just analysing the results of interviews with 504 patients concerning a wide range of tests. They are often told less about commonplace investigations such as barium meal because the staff assume that they know all about it already, whereas cardiac catheterisation is fully explained. One must also bear in mind that patients often hear frightening and incorrect tales from others-for example, nowadays drinking a teacupful of barium in a dimmed room is less unpleasant than a pint swallowed in darkness. Even venepuncture and electrocardiograms scare some. Stressing that these are just routine tests often helps.