Doctors preparing for surgery

Failure to Diagnose a Heart Attack

Long Island Based Representation for Victims of Misdiagnosis

The failure to recognize, diagnose, or treat a heart attack in a timely fashion is a very frequent basis for medical malpractice claims. In many cases, the failure to diagnose a heart attack can cause fatal injuries. Even when a failed diagnosis does not cause fatal injury, patients may suffer permanent injuries or impairment.

If you or a loved one has been injured because a medical professional failed to properly recognize warning signs of a heart attack, we urge you to contact the experienced medical malpractice attorneys at RGLZ Personal Injury Law.

Warning Signs of a Heart Attack

When a patient tells an emergency room doctor, primary care physician or other medical professional that he or she has been experiencing chest pain, it is incumbent upon that medical professional to take proper steps to determine if the patient is at risk for a heart attack.

In some cases, doctors fail to properly respond to warning signs of a heart attack because a patient is young or because the doctor feels that the patient may merely be experiencing indigestion or fatigue-induced stress. When a doctor assumes incorrectly and does not take proper precautions, however, his or her patient may suffer a serious or fatal injury.

Today’s modern technology allows doctors to perform tests that can diagnose whether a patient is at risk for a heart attack. If they fail to take warning signs seriously, however, even the best technology can be rendered useless. Doctors should be on high alert to avoid the following mistakes:

  • Discharging a patient who is complaining of chest pain
  • Failure to treat a patient who is experiencing chest pain in a timely fashion
  • Prescribing medications to patients who have heart problems without considering possible side-effects
  • Failure to ask patients about possible risk factors for a heart attack
  • Failure to perform an EKG when necessary
  • Failure to properly read or understand the results of an EKG

We urge you to speak to an attorney immediately if you or a family member has been injured due to medical negligence of this fashion.

Contact Us at RGLZ

We represent clients throughout New York City and Long Island in all types of medical malpractice claims. We handle all medical malpractice claims on a contingency fee basis, so you pay no fees to us unless we recover compensation for you. To schedule a free consultation and case evaluation with one of our Suffolk County of New York City medical malpractice lawyers, call 866-639-5567 or contact us by e-mail. We’ll help you get to a better place.