Local patient Sawyer Schmidt was reportedly quite impressed with the clinical acumen of his PCP Dr Roundhouse after an office visit to discuss CT scan findings suggestive of “mesenteric panniculitis,” unaware that the illusion of knowledge was created after both men had glanced over the same Radiopaedia webpage.
The quaint diagnosis was made after an increasingly frequent abdominal pain ED visit by Mr Schmidt finally resulted in a CT scan, with the subsequent outpatient referral to his primary care doc. Nervous for his meeting to discuss the condition, the night before his appointment Mr Schmidt made sure to have a quick Google search of “mesenteric panniculitis” so as to be informed before meeting his doctor. He settled on the Radiopedia page since it was the second in the results list and had the most colorful images.
Unbeknownst to Sawyer, Dr Roundhouse was consulting the same website mere moments before entering the patient room, and for the same reasons.
“What the hell is this” Dr Roundhouse could be heard muttering in the halls, scrolling through the quick Radiopedia bullet points on his cell phone. “’Could be related to Weber-Christian disease’?? Are they serious right now? This can’t be a real thing.”
“Wow, even though it is an extremely rare condition he is still so well informed” Sawyer later commented, satisfied after his doctor parroted the website’s main points verbatim including that the disease is self-limiting and surgery is not indicated. “His patients are lucky to have such a smart doctor.”
At press time, Dr Roundhouse could be seen outside his next appointment’s room squinting at his phone and sounding out “por-pho-bilin-ogen.”
