Abstract
Consider the following 3 patient stories: Reluctantly, A.B. heaved his bulk out of the air-conditioned car and into the hot, bright afternoon sun. The walk across the steaming macadam parking lot left him breathless, and his hand shook as he buried the cigarette butt into the sand on top of the shining brass receptacle guarding the entrance to the casino. His head pounded with the exertion, and he realized he forgot to take his blood pressure pill. Once he adjusted to the dimly lit interior and breathed the cool air, he caught his breath and cashed in $500 worth of chips. He quickly gravitated to the blackjack table, but in 30 minutes was cleaned out. His chest now ached with a soreness that had been waking him up at night for the last 2 weeks. As A.B. massaged his left breast, he began to feel lightheaded, and then the room went black. When C.D. heard the overhead page announcing that his flight was finally ready for boarding, he gulped down his wine and hurried out of the VIP lounge, lugging the distended briefcase over his shoulder. After showing his passport for what seemed the tenth time, he boarded the DC 10 and headed for the business section. The plane was already 2 hours late, and he was angry that he would miss his connection at Heathrow. But that seemed unimportant now as the fluttering in his chest started again. The doctor had told him it was ventricular tachycardia because of his enlarged heart and suggested a new medication, but he didn’t want to take it. The fluttering increased as the plane took off and continued through dinner. As C.D. settled back with his cognac, he looked down on the Atlantic, making out a few diamonds of light sparkling on the …
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