As most Pennsylvania residents know, a misdiagnosis during medical care or treatment can cause many problems and needless stress. A misdiagnosis could result in the wrong type of treatment being prescribed, resulting in no improvement to a condition. In serious situations, the condition could also worsen.
A misdiagnosis often causes confusion, as you may be expecting your condition or health to improve and become worried when it doesn’t.
A study conducted by John Hopkins University School of Medicine demonstrated that the ramifications of a misdiagnosis may be more serious than you think. The study found that 1 in 3 cases of misdiagnosis result in serious injury or death. This means that as much as one-third of medical malpractice lawsuits involve a misdiagnosis that led to a serious or permanent injury or a fatality.
Through its analysis, the study found that most medical malpractice cases involving a misdiagnosis involved a general care doctor, while the remaining cases were evenly divided between diagnostic service providers, surgeons and other medical specialists. The greatest categories of misdiagnosis involved infections, vascular issues and cancer diagnoses. Within each category, stroke, sepsis and lung cancer were most often misdiagnosed.
What can be done?
Dealing with a health issue is often stressful and taxing no matter what. Hearing that you have one thing, only to later find out you have another because the doctor got it wrong can cause substantial anguish and pain and put extreme strain on your loved ones. It’s even worse when you learn that your true medical condition has worsened because it went without treatment due to a your misdiagnosis.
If you’ve received a medical misdiagnosis that has caused you to need additional or different medical treatment, cost you more money in medical costs, or resulted in mental or emotional distress, there are many potential options available to you. It can be helpful to speak with a knowledgeable medical malpractice attorney.