When students know how a disease could eventually progress, minor symptoms can assume a foreboding quality, scaring many of the students. While second-years have very little patient interaction, they spend an average of 3 hours per week shadowing physicians. When they see sick, bed-ridden people, identify their symptoms, and learn how their diseases started, medical students begin thinking they don't want to see themselves or anyone close to them in that situation, Mendivil said. This can be very distracting, especially when one is expected to acquire a mastery of these diseases in a short period of time. To one degree or another, sophomoritis affects at least one half of second-year students, Mendivil guessed.
Compulsive diagnosis can become a way of life for second years.
They think everything they learn about in lecture is real in themselves or family members. He knew that these were the warning signs of cancer of the esophagus. I told her she needed to get some treatment. Of course this diagnosis came shortly after a recent lecture on heartburn. To cure herself of the symptoms, she only needed to take an antacid.