Potential misses of cardiomyopathy
Cardiomyopathy is a common heart disease for Ohio residents that sometimes is not diagnosed until well after it has developed into total congestive heart failure. It is essentially the swelling of the heart to the point that it loosens the organ away from its proper positioning within the chest. While there is no cure, there are some remedies such as pacemakers that can help the heart return to normal functioning rhythm. It is important to catch it early, and missing the disease in testing can result in deteriorating health.
Cardiomyopathy diagnosis
Physicians use specific testing procedures when diagnosing heart problems. Congestive heart failure is usually tested first by a stress test that can consist of either a treadmill walk to increase the heart rate or a medically induced stress test by IV injection. Also available to doctors are MRI evaluations and the potential use of a CT scan for more information gathering along with echocardiograms and EKG readings. Some patients also have arterial blockages that often actually cause the condition when the blockages go undetected or unchecked. Failure to conduct any of these tests could be considered medical malpractice.
Dangers of a failed diagnosis
While arterial blockages are relatively common and can be treated with a heart catheterization in many instances, actual cardiomyopathy is not always a component of heart disease for many. It is directly associated with AF. For a doctor to fail to diagnose cardiomyopathy, it takes a significant failure to follow standard protocol. Medical malpractice attorneys can then use this failure to follow standard procedure in building a case for missing the diagnosis.
Procrastinating testing can result in quick deterioration of the heart muscle when left untreated, which can be the basis for a significant
medical malpractice claim. Always retain an experienced medical malpractice attorney who understands how to build a solid case for maximum award when negligence is provable.