Failure to Diagnose Heart Attack is More Common in Women

This week we covered a tragic Port Arthur medical malpractice case in which an emergency room doctor incorrectly diagnosed a woman’s heart attack symptoms and released her from the hospital. Less than 24 hours later, the woman had died of a massive heart attack.
Even more so than men, women can often be the victims of failure to diagnose heart attacks. Since it is vital to treat heart attacks or heart attack signs immediately, missing a heart attack diagnosis can be extremely dangerous and often deadly.
It is important to understand that heart attacks are becoming more common in women and are in fact the leading cause of death for women. It is even more important to know that heart attack signs and symptoms are different in women then they are in men. While a man who is having pain in his left arm and chest may quickly be diagnosed with a heart attack, a women with common signs of female heart attack may be treated for another condition completely.
What are the signs of a heart attack in a woman? Only one in three women reported chest pain or discomfort. Instead, a majority reported unusual fatigue, trouble sleeping, and shortness of breath. Women also more commonly report nausea, sweating, pounding heart, and dizziness. Unfortunately, these symptoms are often diagnosed incorrectly at the ER as panic attacks, food poisoning, or even “just being in your head.”
If you or a loved one was wrongly diagnosed before a heart attack in the Dallas area, contact a Dallas medical misdiagnosis lawyer today.