5 Commonly Misdiagnosed Illnesses by Doctors
When seeking a doctor, you want to find someone who is experienced and dedicated to making sure you are at your best health. Yearly physicals are a way for doctors to run tests and check your body to see how good your state of health is. There are many incidents where doctors may overlook an illness, leaving it untreated until the patient becomes very ill. When doctors misdiagnose or overlook an illness in a patient they are committing an act of medical negligence. Some illnesses can express similar symptoms to other diseases which is why a doctor may overlook it. Here are 5 commonly misdiagnosed illnesses by doctors.
Cancer
Unfortunately, there are many times doctors may overlook or not detect a patient has cancer. Sometimes patients will not express any symptoms till the cancer has progressed. During a routine physical, a doctor should test your blood work and check your body for any signs of cancer. Patients will usually feel a difference in their body and will go for tests specific to the area. Also, patients who have a certain type of cancer in their family will usually get tested to catch it early on. Common cancers that go misdiagnosed include multiple myeloma, lymphoma, and bladder.
Autoimmune Conditions
One of the most common misdiagnosed conditions are those that are autoimmune. Conditions like celiac disease can be misdiagnosed as irritable bowel syndrome or Chron’s disease, when it’s just an allergy to wheat, barley, rye, and gluten. Doctors should test patients by performing blood work and other tests to specifically target what the disease is and how to properly treat it. Other misdiagnosed immune conditions include lupus, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis.
Lyme Disease
Another common misdiagnosis is Lyme disease. This is an infection that is caused by a tick bite which causes shortness of breath, abdominal cramping, rash, and more. Doctors may misdiagnose this disease as the flu, depression, or chronic fatigue syndrome. More than often this disease can be immediately detected based on the tick bite. If there is no bite present, tests should be performed by a doctor to examine the patient’s antibodies through a two-step blood test.
Stroke
Strokes can happen while an individual is asleep and they may not even realize it happened when they wake up. Strokes can range from minimal to severe, but depending on the outcome can reoccur at another time. It is important for doctors to run stroke specific tests. Doctors commonly misdiagnose strokes as migraines or vertigo.
Migraine
Most people have experienced a migraine at some point in their life. For many people, migraines occur often which impairs their ability to live a normal life since they are in pain. When the patient goes to see the doctor, they may assume the worst-case scenario. Many doctors misdiagnose migraines as a brain aneurysm, stroke, or brain tumor. Doctors should test their patients before drawing any conclusions. The difference between a misdiagnoses and proper diagnoses can change someone’s life.
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