Heart attacks are a leading cause of premature mortality and hospitalization across the United States. People experiencing emergency cardiac events generally require professional stabilization and emergency interventions, including medication and even surgery.
Unfortunately, while most people think they know how to spot the warning signs of a heart attack, medical professionals might actually make mistakes regarding this emergency medical issue. Anyone could end up turned away from an emergency room or similar facility during a heart attack, but women are at especially high risk.
Female symptoms are often different
Women have a 50% higher risk of experiencing a heart attack misdiagnosis when compared with male patients. Male and female bodies are distinct in several significant ways that can complicate medical care.
During a heart attack, a woman may present substantially different symptoms than a man does. Chest pain is common in both sexes, but men often report their chest pain as much more intense. Men are more likely to feel that pain radiating into their left arms. Women may experience nausea, vomiting, fatigue, back pain and difficulty breathing.
Medical professionals who do not have training on the unique presentation of heart attacks in female patients could overlook warning signs and turn a woman away when she is actually in need of immediate hospitalization. Delays in cardiac care can lead to a worse prognosis or a completely preventable death.
Patients with substantially increased heart attack medical expenses and grieving families may have grounds for a medical malpractice lawsuit in such cases. Establishing that a diagnostic error has occurred can help people hold medical professionals accountable for overlooking a potentially deadly event.