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Il paziente preferisce il proprio isolamento individuale.

Il paziente preferisce il proprio isolamento individuale.
The patient prefers his own individual isolation.
From Lesson 300:The possessive adjective 'own' (proprio)·Italian

Questions & Answers about Il paziente preferisce il proprio isolamento individuale.

Why is il proprio used here instead of il suo?
While il suo means 'his', il proprio specifically refers back to the subject of the sentence (il paziente). It translates directly to 'his own'. Using proprio makes it clear that he prefers his own isolation rather than someone else's, and it adds extra emphasis.
Why is the verb conjugated as preferisce instead of 'prefere'?
Preferire (to prefer) is one of the common -ire verbs that requires an -isc- insertion in the present tense. For the io, tu, lui/lei, and loro forms, you must add -isc- between the stem and the ending. Therefore, the lui/lei form becomes preferisce.
Could I leave out the article and just say preferisce proprio isolamento?
No. Just like with standard possessives (such as il mio or il tuo), you must include the definite article (il, in this case) before proprio. The only major exception to this rule is for singular close family members, which doesn't apply to the noun isolamento.
Why does individuale end in -e if it describes the masculine noun isolamento?
Adjectives that end in -e in their dictionary form (like individuale, intelligente, or grande) do not change their ending for gender. They use the -e ending for both masculine and feminine singular nouns. They only change their ending to -i when they become plural.

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