An incorrect diagnosis can change your life forever. Your ailment can steadily get worse as it goes untreated. You can suffer through treatments that you never needed. For time-sensitive issues -- cancer, bleeding on the brain, a blockage in your heart -- a treatable ailment can even turn fatal.
How often does this happen? How worried should you be?
Naturally, it differs from office to office, but reports claim that about 10 to 15 percent of new cases end up with the wrong diagnosis. It is worth noting that this happens about twice as much when people go to see their doctor, compared to the same rates in a hospital.
That being said, people often go to the doctor at the beginning of a problem, before it has grown too advanced. By the time they get to the hospital, things are already serious. As such, a misdiagnosis in the hospital may be less common, but it can be more detrimental to a person's health.
You should also know that one study found that around 160,000 people get permanent injuries or pass away annually due to a late diagnosis, a misdiagnosis or a case where medical professionals entirely miss the issue. The stakes are incredibly high, and thousands of people find themselves on the wrong end of these errors every single day. It's a dire problem that many people know nothing about -- until it happens to them.
If it happens to you, whether you suffer from complications or lose a loved one, it may be time to seek financial compensation. This is especially true if the doctor was negligent and did not offer a high standard of care.