When you are sick or not feeling well, it is common sense to go to the doctor to see if it is anything serious. Unfortunately, medical doctors can make mistakes and misdiagnose the issue.
While doctors have around a 95% success rate when it comes to diagnosing their patients, any misdiagnosis may result in undue suffering or incorrect treatments. Keep reading for signs of misdiagnosis and how to prevent one from occurring.
Preventing a misdiagnosis
According to FindLaw experts, there are questions that you can ask your doctor to decrease the chance of a misdiagnosis:
- Why am I not getting better?
- Can you review my results again?
- What other diagnoses do my symptoms fit?
- What other treatments are available?
Additionally, you may want to ask for a second opinion, seek an appointment with a specialist or find a new doctor.
Signs of a misdiagnosis
One of the most obvious signs of misdiagnosis is if your symptoms do not get better or even worsen after treatment. If your medication does not seem to work, for example, you may not be treating the correct problem. This can occur when your symptoms match other conditions.
If your doctor does not do a complete review of your medical history and background, a misdiagnosis can occur. Doctors do not always spend as much time reviewing patient’s histories as they would like and can miss something important by not doing so.
Another sign of misdiagnosis happens when you receive a differing diagnosis from another physician or specialist. This should be a cause for concern and addressed immediately.