Computer Diagnosis - Will it help cure you or kill you?

Our Forum editor, Harry Larson, was diligently reading his L. A. Times last April 26 and he ran across a nationally syndicated column by the well-known Dr. Walter Alvarez. In his column, Dr. Alvarez expressed some grave doubts about computer diagnosis as substituted for the personal patient interview by a competent physician. The column and the exchange of letters that followed make interesting reading and are reprinted below. After reading them you may have some comments of your own ... if so, we'd like to hear from you. -Ed.