[Perception of organ grafts by internists].
BACKGROUND
At the time when organ transplantation occupies a preponderant place in the treatment of many pathologies, the role of the internist in the care of grafted patients remains confidential and poorly defined.


METHODS
A questionnaire was sent to 730 internist practitioners. The aims of this questionnaire were to evaluate 1) their level of knowledge and practice of transplantation; 2) their declared interest on the subject; and finally 3) their perception of the theoretical place of the internists in the transplantation.


RESULTS
Two hundred twenty-five answered. Although nearly 80% of the practitioners who answered this investigation declared themselves interested in the subject of transplantation, more than 60% considered their theoretical and practical knowledge on the subject to be insufficient. Nearly 70% said they felt ill at ease when faced with a grafted patient in consultation. Nearly two experts out of three considered that the role of the internist in the follow-up of grafted patients should be reinforced but less than 50% of them wished to be more involved, directly and personally.


CONCLUSIONS
Whereas grafted patients frequently suffer from polypathologies that could be treated in internal medicine, a majority of internists do not wish to be directly implicated and/or do not feel qualified to treat these patients. The inherent risk in this is to see this specialty gradually excluded from the care networks available to grafted patients.
Fardet
L
L
Service de médecine interne, hôpital Saint-Antoine, 184, rue du Faubourg-Saint-Antoine 75571 Paris, France.
Tuppin
P
P
Farge-Bancel
D
D
D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D005260:Female; D019538:Health Care Surveys; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007388:Internal Medicine; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D016377:Organ Transplantation; D012017:Referral and Consultation; D012307:Risk Factors