It was reported today that over 33 per cent of heart attack patients in England and Wales were given the wrong initial diagnosis. Women were 50% more likely than men to have an initial misdiagnosis.
University of Leeds conducted the research which examined NHS data on about 600,000 heart attack cases between April 2004 and March 2013 and has just been published in the European Heart Journal – Acute Cardiovascular Care. It involved 243 NHS hospitals in England and Wales which cared for patients who were aged between 18 to 100 years old when they were admitted. Researchers found that 198,534 patients were initially misdiagnosed.
Up to 28,000 women die from heart attacks each year in the UK, according to the British Heart Foundation (BHF). There are also about 275,000 female heart attack survivors in the UK.
NHS England said it was working to improve the diagnosis of heart attacks.
The BHF is urging people to be aware of the symptoms of a heart attack.
Moosa-Duke Solicitors has previously represented patients who have suffered due to a misdiagnosis of a heart attack. The video below shows one of our cases which was featured in the news, where a heart attack patient was told that the chest pain was heartburn.
Delay in Referral Leading to Heart Attack
If you or a loved one has suffered as a result of poor care from a medical professional, please feel free to call us for a no obligation discussion on 0116 254 7456.
