Medical errors are often responsible for misdiagnosis and death of heart attack victims. More than 1.2 million new and recurrent heart attacks are reported annually in the United States. Approximately one-third of those, 425,000, result in death.

Some have estimated that between 2 – 4% of heart attack victims who have entered emergency rooms with acute coronary syndrome or myocardial infarctions are discharged from the hospital without the appropriate diagnosis and treatment.

Women and younger individuals are most likely to be misdiagnosed even after presenting with typical heart attack symptoms. Among the most common mistakes is a doctor choosing not to perform the standard test to rule out heart attack or investigate patient histories and risk factors. In some other medical error cases, even the reports are misread.

Heart attacks can cause permanent damage to the heart muscle. In referring to myocardial infarction (MI), the “myo” means muscle, “cardial” refers to the heart and “infarction” relates to death of tissue due to lack of blood supply.

Symptoms of heart attack can include:

• Pain in the chest, arm or below the breast bone;
• Discomfort radiating to the back, jaw, throat or arm;
• Fullness, indigestion or choking feeling;
• Sweating, nausea, vomiting or dizziness;
• Extreme weakness, anxiety or shortness of breath;
• Rapid or irregular heartbeats.

Certainly there are other symptoms, but if any of these are experienced, call the emergency department at your nearest hospital or your doctor.

Heart attack errors leading to injury or death is devastating. It is imperative that you have experienced lawyers on your side. With over 35 years of experience in handling heart attack errors cases, the Chicago medical malpractice lawyers at Kreisman Law Offices have the know-how and resources to aggressively handle your medical negligence claim and obtain justice for you and your family. Contact our Chicago office at 312-346-0045 or 800-583-8002 or by email at bob@robertkreisman.com for an immediate free consultation, or fill out our contact form.