A new study has found that women are commonly misdiagnosing themselves due to information they find on the internet. These women are also improperly treating their supposed illnesses based on that same information.

The study consisted of 1,000 women, and revealed that these women were two times more likely to log onto the internet to self-diagnose their symptoms before seeking the advice of a medical professional. More than half of these women also purchased treatment for their misdiagnosed illnesses.

One-fifth of the women who were involved in the study had at one point falsely diagnosed themselves with a serious condition including breast cancer, arthritis, or high blood pressure. The main problems that were researched on the internet included anxiety, headaches, and depression.

Misdiagnosis can be a serious issue with severe consequences. If you have suffered complications due to a misdiagnosis, you need experienced representation on your side. Please contact the Philadelphia misdiagnosis lawyers of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. by calling 215-238-1130 today.

A Minnesota couple recently filed suit against a doctor who failed to diagnose their 5-year old daughter with cancer for a year.  According to the misdiagnosis lawsuit, the physician’s delayed diagnosis decreased her chances of survival from 60 percent to 40 percent.  Now, doctors estimate the girl has a 5 percent chance of surviving.

A lower court would not hear the case because of a “reduced-chance” law in Minnesota that prevents misdiagnosis cases from being heard unless the victim’s chances of survival are less than 50 percent.  The lower court felt that the child’s chance of survival was still likely, and that their claim fell under the state’s “reduced-chance” law, preventing them from being able to address the case.

However, the parents appealed to a Minnesota Court of Appeals, which ruled that the case could proceed because their daughter’s chances of survival were made unlikely by the doctor’s negligence.

An Australian man is filing suit after he was misdiagnosed with stomach cancer.  The 59-year old father says he underwent chemotherapy and had 80 percent of his stomach removed before doctors realized that he had been misdiagnosed.

In 2009, the man received lab reports from Gosford Hospital which diagnosed him with stomach cancer.  After 7 chemotherapy sessions and surgery to remove 80 percent of his stomach, doctors at another hospital where he had the surgery informed him that he never had stomach cancer.

The father says he suffers from depression and anxiety after the misdiagnosis.  In addition, due to the surgery, he can no longer eat sitting down.

In the lawsuit, the man is seeking compensation for his physical and mental injuries and an apology from the hospital.  The man’s attorney stated, “There are nutritional issues and that leads to the need to have ongoing medical assistance as well as the need to have psychological counselling to help him get over this terrible event.”

If you or someone you love has been the victim of a misdiagnosis, contact the Philadelphia misdiagnosis lawyers of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. at to learn more about how we can help you.

According to a study recently published in the American Journal of Family Therapy, the majority of children diagnosed with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder) are misdiagnosed.

The study’s lead author and researcher, Dr. Robert M. Pressman, says that bad bedtime habits often make children exhibit behavior similar to the behavior of children with ADHD.  For example, children with irregular sleeping habits, no established bed time, or who share a bed with their parents are more likely to throw tantrums, experience behavioral problems at school, and have low self-confidence.

Although not all of these consequences of bad bedtime habits are symptoms of ADHD, Dr. Pressman says, “It looks and feels like ADHD but it is not … We are using the term ‘faux ADHD’ to describe it.”

Researchers found that children with poor sleeping habits were 8 to 10 times more likely to experience behavioral changes.  Of the 704 parents surveyed in the study, 33 percent reported that their children had been recommended ADHD treatment or medication, while only about 5 to 9 percent of children in the U.S. have ADHD.

Contact the Philadelphia misdiagnosis lawyers of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. at today, if you or a loved one’s health has been compromised because of an incorrect diagnosis.

A new study shows that physicians working in hospitals and physicians working in doctors’ offices make about the same amount of mistakes.

Looking at almost 11,000 payments made by physicians for medical malpractice in 2009, researchers at Weill Cornell Medical College found that about half of the payments were made by doctors at hospitals and half by doctors at private practices.

Furthermore, the most common type of error committed by physicians working at hospitals was surgical error and the most common type of error committed by physicians working in doctors’ offices was misdiagnosis.

The study can be found in the June 15 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association.

To discuss a case of misdiagnosis with an experienced medical malpractice attorney, contact the Philadelphia misdiagnosis attorneys of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. at today.

A family in Indiana recently shared their story of a misdiagnosis with reporters.  The wife and mother of the family, Charlotte York, says when she initially went to the hospital, doctors informed her that she had bronchitis and she was released.  After this, York’s kidneys shut down for several weeks.

York returned to the hospital and doctors diagnosed her with pancreatitis.  The mother’s pancreas had become so swollen it was pushing on her lungs and caused pockets of fluid to fill her stomach.  Doctors have said that she is not in strong enough condition to have surgery to treat the pancreatitis.

In addition, insurance complications have caused York to be transferred between hospitals frequently.  York’s husband worries that she is not spending enough time in one hospital.

Contact the Philadelphia misdiagnosis attorneys of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. at today, if you or someone you love has been misdiagnosed by a medical professional and suffered serious consequences.

A Indiana doctor has been named in a medical malpractice lawsuit filed by the family of a deceased woman who claim a misdiagnosis led to her death.

The lawsuit, filed by the family of Phyllis Barnes, is one of hundreds filed against former Merrillville, Ind., ear, nose and throat doctro Mark Weinberger. The lawsuit alleges the former doctor, as well as physician assistant Joe Clinkenbeard, negligently caused the death of Barnes in September 2004.

In the lawsuit, attorney Kenneth J. Allen claims Weinberger diagnosed Barnes with nasal polyps and a deviated septum, rather than the cancer she actually had. Allen argues Weinberger’s actions were not mistakes, but rather an international scheme to make money doing unnecessary surgeries.

Weinberger was indicted in December 2006 on criminal charges he billed insurance companies for procedures he didn’t perform. He plead guilty last October to 22 counts of health care fraud. He is also facing more than 350 state medical malpractice lawsuits.

If you need assistance with a similar medical malpractice lawsuit, please contact the Philadelphia Misdiagnosis Attorneys of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C., by calling .

The family of a deceased Texas woman has filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against a Houston hospital claiming a doctor’s misdiagnosis caused her death.

According to Harris County District Court documents, the estate of Kelly Lynn Benard is suing Houston Northwest Medical Center and emergency room physician Dr. Akash G. Bhagat. The lawsuit claims Benard began complaining about pain in her right elbow in November 2008. After multiple visits to a primary care doctor and an orthopedic specialist, Benard’s father took her to the emergency room at Houston Northwest Medical Center on December 2.

According to the complaint, Benard was seen by Dr. Bhagat and discharged the following day with orders to see an arthritis specialist. Hours later Benard was taken to Cypress Fairbanks Medical Center emergency room where she died that afternoon.

Benard’s family is seeking an unspecified amount of money in actual and compensatory damages.

To speak with an experienced Philadelphia Misdiagnosis Attorney, please contact Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C., by calling .

85-year old Ramona Jimenez of Long Island, New York went into Brookhaven Memorial Hospital in November 2008 for a severe stomachache.  Doctors diagnosed Jimenez with both stomach and lung cancer and estimated that she had two months to live.  Furthermore, Jimenez claims she was told that she was too old for chemotherapy and instead provided in-home hospice care.

For two years Jimenez stayed at home taking morphine for her supposed cancer.  Jimenez’s husband left her due to her addiction and deteriorating mental and physical state.  She stated, “When I started taking all the drugs, I went out of my mind.  They gave me a lot of morphine.  I couldn’t remember who I was”.

During the 18 months after her diagnosis Jimenez and her family asked nurses and the hospital for more tests which they denied.  Jimenez then went into Stony Brook University Hospital two years after the diagnosis only for doctors to tell her that there were no signs of cancer.

If you or someone you love has been the victim of a misdiagnosis, contact the Philadelphia misdiagnosis attorneys of Lowenthal & Abrams, P.C. at to learn more about your rights.