A heart attack misdiagnosis is a very serious medical mistake. The ramifications can be severe for the patient, and they are often fatal. What sometimes happens is that the doctor diagnoses the patient with something like indigestion, anxiety or gastronomical problems. But if the patient is actually having a heart attack and they leave the medical facility, they may pass away at home.
This can happen to anyone, but studies have found that it happens to women more often than it happens to men. Why is this?
The symptoms may be different
Men and women do not always present the same symptoms for a heart attack. For men, the symptoms are more of the common clichés that you may assume: Crushing chest pain, trouble breathing, profuse sweating, and pain that moves down the arm.
But for women, the symptoms can be much different. They may include things like fatigue, neck pain, jaw pain, dizziness or lightheadedness, nausea and like. Most notably, while some women certainly do have extensive chest pain, they are statistically less likely to mention this as a symptom than men.
Doctors, however, are often looking for the more common male symptoms. If a woman comes in and says that she has been having extensive neck pain and feeling overly fatigued, the doctor will know that something is wrong, but their first thought will not be that it’s a heart attack. This is especially true for male doctors, who may be looking for the symptoms that would be most common for them personally.
If you or a family member have suffered harm due to medical malpractice, it’s very important to look into your legal options.
