Not all medical conditions have a definite cause. For example, when a Belleville resident comes down with a bad cough their doctor may subject them to a battery of tests to rule out pneumonia, bronchial infection and other sinister causes. If their tests yield no information about the patient’s condition then they may simply be left with a general diagnosis of coughing related to a cold.
However, when doctors arrive at wrong diagnoses or fail to attempt to diagnose their patients’ problems, serious problems can result. Misdiagnosis is a serious issue and when it occurs the patients who suffer from their doctors’ mistakes may have personal injury claims for medical malpractice.
A misdiagnosis may occur when a doctor dismisses a patient’s concerns. Instead of examining the symptoms and offering a differential diagnosis for the condition they may write the patient off under the assumption that the condition is nothing serious.
A differential diagnosis is a process that many doctors use to avoid this problematic occurrence. It walks them through the possible causes of a patient’s problem and helps them rule out causes as they collect evidence. However, if a doctor never engages with their patient or tests for information they may not be able to work out possible causes of their patient’s suffering.
A misdiagnosis or failure to diagnose can cause a patient to suffer with their ailment longer than necessary. It may cause a patient to suffer a worsened condition if their untreated illness deteriorates and causes them more problems with their health. Consultation with a personal injury attorney who works in the medical malpractice area of the law may be a good step for individuals who have suffered these wrongs.