Failure to Diagnose or Treat a Child
Delayed Diagnosis of Pediatric Conditions
When a doctor fails to recognize your child’s symptoms or fails to thoroughly investigate the possible conditions associated with these symptoms, the results can be devastating. An undetected illness or condition can cause serious harm to your child and in some cases, the damage is irreversible. Failure to diagnose or treat is a form of medical negligence that can adversely affect children of all ages. In fact, failure to diagnose can occur while your child is still is in the womb. After birth, the tiniest infant can become a victim. As the years progress, failure to detect a medical condition can cause harm to toddlers, preschoolers, and children at every stage of growth. If your child suffered injury as a result of a pediatrician or other healthcare professional’s failure to diagnose or treat their condition, you can pursue compensation for your child’s medical expenses, long-term care needs, and physical and emotional pain. Continue reading for a better understanding of failure to diagnose in pediatrics.
When Failure to Diagnose Happens to Children
Failure to detect or diagnose a medical condition is a serious medical mistake that may result in significant complications, if not death for a child. This type of negligence can happen at any time.
Failure to Diagnose before Birth
At the earliest stages of development, doctors may overlook signs of a medical condition in the mother that causes harm to the fetus if left untreated. For example, when a mother is suffering from an infection, it can be transferred to her child through the bloodstream or placenta, or passed to the child as it travels through the birth canal. The following are examples of instances in which failure to diagnose or treat a condition in the mother can cause harm to the infant.
- Failure to diagnose or treat maternal infection
- Failure to diagnose preeclampsia
- Failure to detect gestational diabetes
- Failure to identify abnormal delivery presentation
Wrongful birth is another form of failure to diagnose that occurs when doctors fail to identify congenital abnormalities or birth defects in a fetus during pregnancy. This can lead parents to move forward with a pregnancy they may have otherwise decided against. It can be tragic and traumatic to deliver a child with a severe disability or one who is unable to survive outside of the womb.
Failure to Diagnose a Child’s Medical Condition
Pediatric diagnostic errors can occur in a wide variety of healthcare settings, including emergency rooms, pediatric offices, and general family medicine practices. Some of the most common conditions associated with failure to diagnose in pediatrics include:
- Failure to diagnose Appendicitis
- Failure to diagnose Meningitis
- Failure to diagnose Pneumonia
- Failure to diagnose Infection
- Failure to diagnose Heart Failure
- Failure to diagnose Cancer
Complications of Failure to Diagnose in Pediatrics
The major issue caused by failure to diagnose is the inability to provide immediate and appropriate treatment. A child’s medical condition can progress to a much more dangerous stage, cause more serious complications, or even become life-threatening if a doctor fails to detect it. In some cases, the doctor simply fails to identify obvious signs, while in others, they may fail to consider all possible conditions associated with the symptoms. In still other cases, a misdiagnosis can lead to inappropriate treatment for another condition. Regardless of the way in which failure to diagnose occurs, the associated consequences can be seriously damaging.
Some potential complications of failure to diagnose a child include:
- Brain damage
- Nerve damage
- Permanent physical injury
- Cognitive impairments
- Developmental delays
- Learning disabilities
- Paralysis
- Hearing loss
- Vision loss
- Difficulties with memory
- Cerebral Palsy
- Brachial plexus injury
- Erb’s Palsy
- Hypoxic ischemic encephalopathy (HIE)
- Heart attack
- Stroke
- Wrongful Death
Contact Jersey City NJ Pediatric Failure to Diagnose Lawyers for Answers
If your child suffered injury or complications because a doctor failed to diagnose an illness or medical condition, it is crucial to assert your rights. Consult a knowledgeable pediatric medical malpractice attorney about your legal options. Call (866)-708-8617 today or submit an online contact form to find additional information and a free evaluation of your child’s pediatric or birth injury case. With offices in Newark, New Jersey and Manhattan, New York, our legal team represents victims in Bergen County, Morris County, Essex County, Somerset County, Middlesex County, Union County, Hudson County, and throughout the tristate area.
