Don’t dismiss the little notes that patients bring

It is not unusual for patients to present to the doctor’s clinic armed with a note listing their symptoms and queries. They proceed to give a detailed narrative of their symptoms one by one, demanding analysis and treatment for all of them. This condition has been termed “la maladie du petit papier,” loosely translated as “disease of the small piece of paper,”1 or as “an exhaustive list of purported ailments carried around by a neurotic patient, often accompanied by extensive documentation of each bowel movement or sip of water.”2

Although it was first reported in literature almost half a century ago, references are sparse.3 The origins of the phrase are obscure, …