[Should we give the examination results to the patients?]

Immediately after medical imaging procedures, patients often ask for the results of their examination. Such a request is very uncomfortable for the physician performing the examination, who usually does not know the whole medical file, the psychological status of the patient, how he is informed about his illness, etc. By the means of a questionnaire we asked belgian nuclear medicine physicians about the frequency of such situations and about their practical attitude. 204 questionnaires were sent; we received 119 answers (58%) after a 6 weeks delay. In more than 85% of the cases, this situation occurs regularly, and more than 50% of the participating physicians encounter the problem in more than 20% of the cases. Less than 10% of the participating physicians never give any result to the patient asking for it, while more than 20% always give it. Most of the physicians takes into account the clinical situation of the patient. Unfortunately, the official guidelines do not help to clarify the situation. This work confirms that physicians who perform diagnostic procedures frequently encounter difficulties in patients information. It would be necessary that all people who are concerned by this problem collaborate in order to define a clear and accurate attitude which would be easily applicable in our daily clinical practice.