It can be terrifying to feel pain, discomfort, or any other number of discomforting symptoms and not know the cause. When we are ill we rely on the care, training, and insight of trained medical professionals to properly diagnose and treat our ailments. In many instances, the key to recovering from an illness involves diagnosing and treating the disease right away. Some ailments, like cancer, can have serious–even fatal–results if there is a delay in diagnosis. Without a timely and proper diagnosis, you can suffer unnecessary pain, discomfort, or other types of serious harm, including death.

Georgia Law Allows You to Recover for Misdiagnosis

A misdiagnosis includes an instance where a doctor or other medical professional has failed to properly diagnose a disease. Under Georgia law, for a patient to be able to recover damages for a misdiagnosis, the patient must show that the misdiagnosis resulted in some kind of injury. For instance, the patient may demonstrate that the disease progressed beyond what would have resulted from a timely and proper diagnosis.

Misdiagnosis May Lead to Different Types of Harms

• Failure to diagnose a disease within a reasonable amount of time – In some instances, a misdiagnosis may include an instance where a medical professional has failed to detect a disease in time. This may result in the patient suffering harm (e.g., due to a progression of the disease) that would have been avoided if the medical professional had caught the disease in time. For example, a medical professional who fails to diagnose a type of cancer may result in the cancer spreading to other organs or tissue. Often this type of misdiagnosis is the result of a failure by the medical professional to conduct a proper and thorough examination or to order proper laboratory tests.

• Diagnosing a patient with an incorrect disease – In some instances, a misdiagnosis may include an instance where a medical professional has incorrectly diagnosed a disease, thus labeling the patient with a disease that the patient does not, in fact, have. In addition to the harm that may follow a medical practitioner’s failure to diagnose a disease in a timely fashion, as discussed above, this type of misdiagnosis may subject the patient to unnecessary treatments. Such treatments may cause discomfort or harm. For example, the patient may suffer from the side effects of a medication that, in fact, is not necessary.

Getting Help When You Have Been Harmed by a Medical Misdiagnosis

We place our lives in the hands of trained medical professionals and expect that they will use their training and good judgment to treat our ailments. When a doctor has failed live up to this duty it is essential that you contact a skilled medical misdiagnosis lawyer in Atlanta right away. The Atlanta medical malpractice attorneys at Goldstein and Hayes, P.C., have extensive experience helping those who have been harmed by the negligence of medical caretakers. We can answer your questions, assess your case, and help you hold those responsible for your injuries accountable.