Physician Estimates of Disease Severity in Chronic Heart or Lung Disease
Author Information
Author(s): Kroenke Kurt, Wyrwich Kathleen W, Tierney William M, Babu Ajit N, Wolinsky Fredric D
Primary Institution: Indiana University School of Medicine
Hypothesis
How well do physicians' global estimates of disease severity correspond to specific physician-rated disease variables and patients' self-rated health?
Conclusion
Physicians' global ratings may provide unique disease severity and prognostic information that complements patient self-rated health.
Supporting Evidence
- Physicians rated 40% of their patients 'about average', 30% 'worse', and 30% 'better'.
- The physician's global estimate was strongly associated with specific elements of disease severity.
- Only 16.4% of the variance in physician-rated disease severity was explained by patient variables.
Takeaway
Doctors can guess how serious a patient's illness is, but their guesses don't always match what the patients think about their own health.
Methodology
Analyzed baseline data from 1662 primary care patients with chronic cardiac or pulmonary disease.
Potential Biases
Responses from physicians may not be independent due to their dual role in assessing both global and specific severity.
Limitations
The study relied on cross-sectional data and subjective measures from both physicians and patients.
Participant Demographics
61.1% men, mean age 63.1 years, 67.4% white, 28.4% black, 4.2% non-white non-black.
Statistical Information
P-Value
<0.001
Statistical Significance
p<0.001
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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