Telling patients there is nothing wrong: Randomised controlled trials are needed

Telling patients there is nothing wrong Randomised controlled trials are needed EDrroR,-It is still unclear from the literature whether investigative tests reassure patients with anxieties about the presence of serious disease.' 2 Ray Fitzpatrick discusses some of the possible reasons for this, including psychiatric morbidity, poor communication, and the "wild card effects" mentioned in the study by I G McDonald and colleagues.3Other psychological processes in patients are