Comparative analysis of diagnostic probability estimates of some common diagnoses among family doctors, medical residents, and medical students reveals negative correlation between age and estimate of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD).

BACKGROUND Patients with their given complaints and symptoms expect certain diagnoses to be estimated with the same probability when seen by different family doctors. These estimations showed extreme variation among family doctors in Switzerland. The present study investigated whether there is any difference in the probabilities of the same diagnoses given by Hungarian doctors and, if so, what the responsible factors are. Estimates given by...