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Posted on October 18, 2008 by Patricia Woloch | Posted under Health and Fitness
Failure to Diagnose a Heart Attack
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Before a heart attack women are more likely then men to be nauseous and experience pain high in the abdomen or chest. Their first symptoms may be extreme fatigue after physical activity rather than chest pain. Symptoms of a heart attack can include: - Chest pain accompanied by heavy sweating. The pain may radiate to the shoulder, arm and jaw - Chest pain precipitated by exercise which doesn't clear up after rest - Mild chest pain with fatigue and feeling of poor health - A feeling of indigestion or heartburn Since heart attack symptoms are similar to a number of other non-life threatening conditions, some doctors may fail to appreciate the severity of the situation and misdiagnose the patient's medical condition. Some of the most common mistakes made during the diagnosis of a heart attack include: - Failure to diagnose a heart attack in younger patients - Failure to consider a heart condition in women - Improper reading of a patient's ECG or EKG A doctor may also fail to properly assess: - The patient's age - Menopause - Any previous heart conditions - Medical history and drug interactions - Exercise, alcohol, drug or tobacco use It is now well established that early diagnosis and treatment of a heart attack is crucial to saving lives and reducing serious damage to a person's heart. Accordingly, anyone who believes they are having a heart attack should seek immediate medical attention. When patients enter a hospital emergency room seeking medical attention, doctors and staff have a professional duty to perform all the necessary tests that will either diagnose a heart attack or rule it out. When doctors put profit over patient care, a missed diagnosis is more likely to result. Proper diagnosis by a health care professional may require a complete medical and social history, an EKG and an ECG to discover abnormalities in the heart and blood work to determine the presence of specific blood enzymes that would indicate if a heart attack were in progress. Premature discharge from care, including from the emergency room of a hospital, could result in severe heart damage or even death. There are also treatments that can be provided which can prevent heart damage and death, such as the use of clot-dissolving drugs. Because the failure to diagnose a heart attack can result in sudden death or debilitating injury, a missed heart attack diagnosis garners the highest medical malpractice payout among all malpractice cases. It is also, unfortunately, the most common form of medical malpractice in the United States. Failing to diagnose a heart attack is a leading cause of medical malpractice lawsuits. About The Author: If you or a loved one has been the victim of misdiagnosed heart attack, please contact the experienced attorneys at the Falvello Law Firm today for more information. |
Tags: MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE LAWYER BERWICK, MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE LAWYER BLOOMSBURG, MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE LAWYER HAZLETON, MEDICAL NEGLIGENCE LAWYER PENNSYLVANIA
