In his Boston Globe piece on last week's Heart Rhythm Society conference, Stephen Heuser reports on discussions about how the risks of implantable heart devices need to be put in perspective. He comes to this conclusion: "The predominant message at the convention is that despite all the gee-whiz marketing, despite all the news coverage, despite all the regulation the government can dream up, doctors and patients can't escape a fundamental truth of medicine: There's no such thing as 100 percent sure." Now if only more members of the mainstream media would get the message.