For a diagnosis of Menopause, the following list of conditions have been mentioned in sources as possible alternative diagnoses to consider during the diagnostic process for Menopause:
The other diseases for which Menopause is listed as a possible alternative diagnosis in their lists include:
Related medical mistakes may include:
Commonly undiagnosed conditions in related areas may include:
Unnecessary hysterectomies due to undiagnosed bleeding disorder in women: The bleeding disorder called Von Willebrand's disease is quite common in women, but often fails to be correctly diagnosed. Women with the condition tend to have heavy periods, since they actually have a bleeding disorder. Severe afflictions may result in the women receiving a hysterectomy unnecessarily, when the underlying cause has not been identified. See the introduction to Von Willebrand's disease and bleeding disorder.
Alzheimer's disease over-diagnosed: The well-known disease of Alzheimer's disease is often over-diagnosed. Patients tend to assume that any memory loss or forgetulness symptom might be Alzheimer's, whereas there are many other less severe possibilities. Some level of memory decline is normal with aging, and even a slight loss of acuity may be noticed in the 30's and 40's. Other conditions can also lead a person to show greater forgetfulness. For example, depression and depressive disorders can cause a person to have reduced concentration and thereby poorer memory retention.
Dementia may be a drug interaction: A common scenario in aged care is for a patient to show mental decline to dementia. Whereas this can, of course, occur due to various medical conditions, such as a stroke or Alzheimer's disease, it can also occur from a side effect or interaction between multiple drugs that the elderly patient may be taking. There are also various other possible causes of dementia.
Rare type of breast cancer without a lump: There is a less common form of breast cancer called inflammatory breast cancer. Its symptoms can be an inflammation of the breast tissue, such as with a breast rash with redness and warmth, but not necessarily a physical breast lump. This type of breast cancer should be considered as an uncommon possibility for certain types of breast symptoms.
Tremor need not be Parkinson's disease: There is the tendency to believe that any tremor symptom, or shakiness, means Parkinson's disease. The reality is that there are various possibilities, such as benign essential tremor, which is mostly harmless. see the various causes of tremor and misdiagnosis of Parkinson's disease.
Rare diseases misdiagnosed as Parkinson's disease: A rare genetic disorder is often misdiagnosed as Parkinson's disease for men in their 50's. The disease Fragile X disorder can show only mild symptoms in the early years, and Parkinsons-like symptoms around age 50. See misdiagnosis of Parkinson's disease.
Female athlete syndrome leads to undiagnosed osteoporosis: Younger women are not usually considered as candidates for diagnosis of osteoporosis. However, a pattern of three conditions can occur in female athletes: disordered eating, amenhorrhea, and bone loss (osteoporosis). See introduction to osteoporosis.
Rare types of medical disorders and diseases in related medical areas:
The following medical news items are relevant to misdiagnosis of Menopause:
Read these general articles with an overview of misdiagnosis issues.
When checking for a misdiagnosis of Menopause or confirming a diagnosis of Menopause, it is useful to consider what other medical conditions might be possible misdiagnoses or other alternative conditions relevant to diagnosis. These alternate diagnoses of Menopause may already have been considered by your doctor or may need to be considered as possible alternative diagnoses or candidates for misdiagnosis of Menopause. For a general overview of misdiagnosis issues for all diseases, see Overview of Misdiagnosis.
What do you think about the features of this website? Take our user survey and have your say:
Next articles:
Tools & Services:
Medical Articles:
Search Specialists by State and City
By using this site you agree to our Terms of Use. Information provided on this site is for informational purposes only; it is not intended as a substitute for advice from your own medical team. The information on this site is not to be used for diagnosing or treating any health concerns you may have - please contact your physician or health care professional for all your medical needs. Please see our Terms of Use.
Copyright © 2009 Health Grades Inc. All rights reserved.
As people age, there are lots of changes. Some are welcome, like retirement and a chance to pursue new activities. But then there are some changes...
While menopause is a natural change for all women, it can cause a variety of symptoms that feel anything but natural. One of the most common...
Most women assume that they already know the ABCs of osteoporosis. But with 10 million cases of this disease in the U.S. alone, there's no doubt...
Theoretically, osteoporosis can strike anyone who has bones in their body, which is all of us. But certain people are at a higher risk, and...