Misdiagnosis of Weakness

Misdiagnosis and Weakness

Anemia undiagnosed in pregnancy: The onset of anemia (low red blood cells) in pregnancy is sometimes overlooked, despite it being a well-known complication of pregnancy. The problem may be that the main symptom, i.e. fatigue, is also a typical symptom of pregnancy itself. Furthermore, diagnosis of anemia requires a blood test to determine the level of red blood cells. Failure to diagnose anemia is dangerous to the health of the mother near the end of pregnancy, and increases the risk of severe maternal hemorrhage and blood loss during birth (possibly even leading to maternal death). Anemia treatment varies by severity ranging from diet changes, iron tablets, or even iron injections; see treatment of anemia. See introduction to anemia and misdiagnosis of anemia.

Underactive thryoid may be misdiagnosed as depression: Hypothyroidism, or underactive thyroid, is an endocrine gland disorder that is more common in women. It can mimic many diseases, including depression. The patient often has depressive type symptoms, and may also have other symptoms of hypothyroidism such as tingling fingers (peripheral neuropathy), hearing loss, headaches, cold insensitivity, and many other symptms. Common misdiagnoses of hypothyroidism include depression, dementia, schizophrenia, or bipolar disorder (esp. rapid-cycling bipolar disorder).

Rare neurological disorder misdiagnosed as anxiety condition: Posterolateral sclerosis is an uncommon neurological disorder that can be misdiagnosed as an anxiety disorder. Symptoms such as peripheral numbness, weakness, or sensations, may be wrongly attributed to a psychological disorder.

Cluster of diseases with difficult diagnosis issues: There is a well-known list of medical conditions that are all somewhat difficult to diagnose, and all can present in a variety of different severities. Diseases in this group include multiple sclerosis, lupus, Lyme disease, fibromyalgia, thyroid disorders (hypothyroidism or hyperthyroidism), chronic fatigue syndrome, diabetes - all of these can have vague symptoms in their early presentations. Also, depression can have some symptoms similar to these conditions, and also the reverse, that many of these conditions can mimic depression and be misdiagnosed as depression.

Pituitary conditions often undiagnosed cause of symptoms: There are a variety of symptoms that can be caused by a pituitary disorder (see symptoms of pituitary disorders). For example, fatigue, headache, weight gain, diabetes-like symptoms, and various other symptoms. Pituitary tumors and other similar conditions are not as rare as physicians tend to believe. See introduction to pituitary conditions.

Commmon case of iron deficeincy anaemia: Iron deficiency anaemia is a common cause of anaemia worldwide. It is the largest cause of microcytic hypochromic anaemia with its main differential diagnosis being thalassaemia and anaemia of chronic disease. It is differentiated from the other two conditions based on blood tests. It is very important to differentiate between iron deficiency anaemia and thalassaemia as the treatment in both the conditions are exactly opposite. In iron deficiency anaemia iron has to be supplemented but in case of thalassaemia the iron stores are normal and iron supplementation is contraindicated. Iron deficiency anaemia must be spotted early on in children as in the long run it affects their cognitive and psychomotor performance and late diagnosis in thalassaemia can cause lethargy, failure to thrive and jaundice.

More about Misdiagnosis

• Causes of Weakness
• Misdiagnosis Overview
• How Common is Misdiagnosis?
• Over-Diagnosed Diseases
• Under-Diagnosed Diseases
• Types of Misdiagnosis
• Wrong Type Misdiagnosis
• Why Does Misdiagnosis Occur?
• Difficult Diseases to Diagnose
• More premium medical articles ...

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