The accuracy of the general practitioner's sense of alarm when confronted with dyspnoea and/or thoracic pain: protocol for a prospective observational study.

Introduction: Dyspnoea and chest pain are signs shared with multiple pathologies ranging from the benign to life-threatening diseases. Gut feelings such as the sense of alarm and the sense of reassurance are known to play a substantial role in the diagnostic reasoning of general practitioners (GPs). A Gut Feelings Questionnaire (GFQ) has been validated to measure the GP's sense of alarm.