Many people believe that proper medical care is easily available in the United States. While that may be true in some cases, it’s not true in others. One instance in which people may have to fight to get a proper diagnosis is women who are having a heart attack.
Heart attacks in women often present very differently than they do in men. This difference has led to a dangerous trend. Women are more likely to be misdiagnosed or sent home when they’re experiencing cardiac distress.
Women are likely to experience subtle symptoms
In the movies and on television, a heart attack is usually something that’s extreme. The person may clutch their chest and fall to the ground. Nearly half of women who are suffering from a heart attack don’t have chest pain, which is the symptom that many associate with this type of heart event.
Instead of chest pain, women may experience other symptoms such as extreme fatigue, nausea or shortness of breath. Some report a squeezing sensation in the chest that goes to their jaw or their left arm. These signs can be easy for doctors to dismiss, especially when they resemble things like anxiety or acid reflux and the doctor isn’t paying attention.
Delayed diagnosis can lead to lifelong consequences
A missed heart attack in women can result in permanent damage to heart tissue. In some cases, this can be fatal. Understanding how symptoms differ between men and women can save lives, so it’s imperative that medical practitioners know these differences.
Any woman who is the victim of a missed or delayed diagnosis of a heart attack because a doctor wasn’t paying close enough attention to her symptoms may decide to seek compensation. These cases are complex and must be filed within a short amount of time after the incident occurs. Working with someone familiar with these matters may be beneficial.
