Sunday, 3 March 2013

What to do about Misdiagnosis of a Stroke

Is it possible to claim compensation for a misdiagnosis of a stroke which left my son brain damaged?


The misdiagnosis of a stroke can have serious repercussions for health, yet the symptoms of a stroke can easily be confused with other illnesses and disorders, especially in an emergency room. The symptoms of a stroke may be subtle, and the age of a patient may see the symptoms interpreted as another illness or condition, especially with younger patients who fall outside of the typical age range of stroke victims.

Rapid treatment of the symptoms of a stroke can seriously reduce the damage caused, and the administration of medication to break down any blood clots and restore blood flow to the brain can reduce the chance of brain damage. While compensation for misdiagnosis of a stroke can in no way make up for the injuries your son has suffered, it may be possible to claim medical compensation to recover any costs, and to pay for medical care as a result of the misdiagnosis. We advise you to consult a specialist medical negligence solicitor to look at your case, to help determine whether the misdiagnosis of a stroke can be deemed to be negligence on the part of the doctors.

A doctor in an emergency room or GP may well underestimate the severity of the symptoms described, and may not associate flu-like symptoms, slurring of speech, blurry vision, balance problems and headaches as signs of a stroke. The misdiagnosis of a stroke is surprisingly common, especially in emergency rooms. Patients have been released from an emergency room with diagnoses such as alcohol intoxication, inner ear infections, vertigo or simple colds and flu, only later to suffer a severe attack which has led to paralysis, brain damage and death. In such cases, when the symptoms have not been accurately diagnosed, or a doctor has made a grave error in diagnosis, it is often possible to claim compensation for misdiagnosis of a stroke and a specialist medical negligence solicitor should be consulted for advice. The case will be investigated and a panel of expert medical professionals asked to review your case to see if the diagnosis of a stroke was reasonable given the circumstances at the time and the symptoms displayed.

If your son was suffering from symptoms of a stroke out of hours, and an on call doctor was consulted and refused to attend and administer treatment, and the symptoms of a stroke were misdiagnosed as something far less serious, you could also be entitled to claim compensation for misdiagnosis of a stroke.

No comments:

Post a Comment

Your comments are most welcome. We will always try to respond as soon as possible.