Misdiagnosis Lawyers in New York City

Categories of Misdiagnosis

Any proficient doctor, surgeon, nurse or other type of medical professional can attest to the fact that a misdiagnosis can manifest itself in one of three ways:

1. Making a false positive, meaning that a disease which does not exist in the patient is diagnosed
2. Making a false negative, meaning that a disease which does exist in the patient fails to be identified by the treating physician
3. Finding equivocal results, meaning that the interpretation of results yields no definitive diagnosis

It has been argued that a physician’s lack of specialization in a specific area of medical practice is largely to blame for the physician’s diagnosis.

This diagnosis, however, does not account for why a specialist was not brought in for advisement during a patient’s diagnosis, nor does it justify the medical complications that were later experienced by the patient as a result of the misdiagnosis.

Our personal injury attorneys are very familiar with the standard procedures expected of the medical professionals who are responsible for properly diagnosing the symptoms of their patients.

Doctors are relied upon for their knowledge of medicine and they are depended upon to more deeply investigate symptoms that are unfamiliar or unrecognizable.

It has been estimated that only about 15 minutes is spent on average with every patient treated by physicians throughout the United States. This is often far from the time needed to make a proper diagnosis of a patient’s illness or injury.

Misdiagnosis has become so common among practicing physicians throughout the country, that there are now illnesses that are regularly associated with a doctor’s failure to properly identify and treat the symptoms that were brought to his or her attention.

Among the top five misdiagnosed conditions that are most frequently the basis of medical malpractice cases are cancer of the lungs, colon, and breasts; myocardial infection; and appendicitis. Underdiagnosed health conditions also include:

• Bacterial vaginosis
• Chlamydia
• Chronic kidney disease
• Glaucoma
• Gonorrhea
• Hemochromatosis
• High cholesterol
• Hypertension
• Hypothyroidism
• Trichomoniasis