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John B. Nesbitt, MD
Meadville, Pa

Arch Intern Med. 1991;151(6):1237-1238.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

To the Editor. —

I would like to make two comments about the report by Kroenke et al¹ that appeared in the August 1990 issue of the ARCHIVES. This report and its companion editorial by Komaroff² on "minor" illness symptoms lament the prevalence and inadequate treatment of symptoms such as dizziness, headache, and fatigue.

My first comment concerns Kroenke's patient population— appears to be all military and military-dependent. Any physician who has worked in such a clinic can tell you that the absence of (1) co-payment and (2) income loss for sick time will inflate the prevalence of minor symptoms.

Second, and more important, I think that we in the health care field should cast a suspicious eye on recommendations to further medicalize the minor vicissitudes of life. Surely, we are under enough criticism now, without making additional implied promises that we can cure every inconvenience. Let's listen . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

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