Soap operas paint too positive a picture of coma

Reported by Susan Aldridge, PhD, medical journalist

People are less likely to survive a coma than you might think from TV medical dramas.
Having a patient in a coma is a common feature in a medical drama - we want to know whether or not they'll recover. Researchers in Philadelphia, USA, have been analyzing storylines involving coma patients over the last 10 years and find these give a false impression of survival.

Only eight per cent of soap opera coma patients died, whereas in real life the figure is more like 50 per cent. All of the fictional coma survivors made a complete recovery. In real life, the figure is only one in ten - and this after intense rehabilitation. Does it matter if the producers of medical soap operas use a little artistic license here? Well, maybe.

Medical dramas reach 40 million viewers in the US alone, many more when broadcast worldwide. It may be important not to convey unrealistic messages. A viewer's family member - or the viewer themself - may fall into a coma at some time. Decisions on treatment may need to be made. These could be more difficult if survival is thought far more likely than it actually is. Maybe a few more storylines should show the more realistic outcome - where the character dies in a coma, although, hopefully with comfort and dignity.

Source
British Medical Journal 24th December 2005 Volume 331 pages 1537-1539