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Capaz que el diagnóstico del astigmatismo es preocupante.

Capaz que el diagnóstico del astigmatismo es preocupante.
The diagnosis of the astigmatism might be concerning.
From Lesson 395:The abstract "lo" (lo + adjective)·Spanish (Latin America)

Questions & Answers about Capaz que el diagnóstico del astigmatismo es preocupante.

Why is capaz que translated as "might be" instead of using a verb like poder?
In Latin America, the phrase capaz que is very commonly used in everyday speech to mean "maybe," "perhaps," or "it's possible that." It acts just like tal vez or quizás. Here, it gives the meaning of "might" to the sentence.
Why does capaz que use the indicative verb es rather than the subjunctive sea?
While phrases expressing doubt often trigger the subjunctive, capaz que frequently takes the indicative in spoken Latin American Spanish. You will sometimes hear it with the subjunctive (sea), but the indicative (es) is perfectly natural and common here to express a strong possibility.
This lesson covers using lo with an adjective. How would we change this sentence to say "the concerning thing is the diagnosis"?
You would use the neuter article lo with the masculine singular form of the adjective. So, "the concerning thing" becomes lo preocupante. The full sentence would be: Capaz que lo preocupante es el diagnóstico del astigmatismo.
Why do we say del astigmatismo when English usually just says "of astigmatism" without "the"?
In Spanish, you generally need to use the definite article (el, la, etc.) when talking about diseases, medical conditions, or abstract concepts in a general sense. Since astigmatismo is a masculine noun, de and el combine into the mandatory contraction del.
Could I use preocupado instead of preocupante here?
No, because they describe different things. Adjectives ending in -ante (like preocupante) describe something that causes a feeling, much like "-ing" in English (concerning or worrying). Preocupado describes the feeling itself, like "-ed" in English (concerned or worried). Since the diagnosis is causing the worry, it must be preocupante.

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