My doctor failed to diagnose my husbands heart condition. He has been going to the doctor frequently, and has mentioned he had some chest pains, and the doctors never diagnosed anything. Then last week, he had a heart attack. Is the doctors failure to diagnose his heart condition grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit?
Is failure to diagnose considered medical malpractice?
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Answer:
A doctors failure to diagnose can, in some cases, be considered medical negligence, and grounds for a lawsuit. Your story sounds like it may have merit, but it may depend on the timing. For example, if your husband was complaining of chest pains for which the doctor did not offer any diagnosis and treatment, then had a heart attack the next day, that would certainly be a good case to pursue. However, if the heart attack happened one year after the visit to the doctor, then it will be much more difficult to establish that the failure to diagnose caused the injury.
Coronary artery disease is the leading cause of death worldwide, and a failure to diagnose this condition, if given the opportunity, can be considered medical negligence on the doctors part. In some cases, this failure to treat a heart attack can lead to a wrongful death case as well.
You should talk to a medical malpractice lawyer soon to establish whether or not the details of your situation warrant filing a medical malpractice lawsuit.
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Posted by Staff Writer on 05 Feb 2010