According to a survey conducted in early 2017, sufferers of multiple sclerosis in New Jersey and the rest of the nation are often misdiagnosed and receive inadequate treatment. The survey, which received responses from approximately 5,300 patients, also determined that pain and fatigue are the two symptoms that significantly affect the quality of their lives.
Obtaining a proper diagnosis of multiple sclerosis can be difficult. Nearly half of the patients who responded to the survey stated that receiving an accurate diagnosis took over five visits to a medical office or hospital. More than two-fifths of the respondents stated that they were misdiagnosed with other health issues, such as chronic fatigue syndrome, depression or fibromyalgia.
Getting the right treatment can also prove to be difficult for multiple sclerosis patients. It can become a process that involves trial and error as patients may experience side effects with one type of treatment, a particular treatment may not be covered by their insurance company or a certain treatment may not work as well as it should. Sixty-five percent of the survey respondents stated that they began receiving treatment within three months after being correctly diagnosed.
People who suffer from multiple sclerosis may exhibit any number of many symptoms. At 87 percent, the respondents reported fatigue as being a major symptom. This was followed by tingling and numbness at 75 percent, memory complications at 70 percent, muscle weakness at 64 percent, pain at 55 percent, depression at 53 percent and complications with vision at 30 percent.
A failure to diagnose a disease can lead to a worsened medical condition due to the delay in obtaining appropriate treatment. Patients who have been harmed in this manner may want to meet with a medical malpractice lawyer to see what recourse they may have.
