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What’s the difference between a missed diagnosis and a misdiagnosis?

On Behalf of | Jan 29, 2021 | Medical Malpractice |

Doctors may not always clearly define what ails you, and in some cases, that can lead to incredible hardships down the road. Recovering after their serious error could depend on getting your own definitions correct.

Up to 80,000 people in the U.S. may die from mistakes by a healthcare professional, and many more could experience severe and lasting harm. While any diagnostic errors can be dangerous, it might be important to know exactly where your case went wrong. This could make sure you cover all the extra costs that arise.

Defining outcomes

A missed diagnosis may take place when your care provider doesn’t address your concerns at all. The doctor may never figure out the source when you should expect most physicians to work toward an answer. This means lost time when it comes to dealing with the health problems you have.

If your physician dismisses pain as trivial or incorrectly labels your troubles when most doctors could reasonably spot the issue, they may have misdiagnosed your situation.

This not only fails to address the real problems you face but can also send you down the path of unnecessary treatments. This can mean additional complications and costs from needless procedures or potentially harmful medications.

Basic errors

There might be differences in definition, but there are common precursors for both. It’s not often that errors come from rare diseases, but rather flawed approaches or negligence. Ordering the wrong tests, ignoring patient concerns, or misinterpreting results can all be a dangerous start to combatting illness.

Finding answers

Understanding if you experienced a missed diagnosis or a misdiagnosis may be the door to a much larger medical malpractice claim. It’s essential that you know where your care went wrong, how much damage was done, and the extent of extra costs you incurred.

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