Missing the signs of a stroke could lead to a patient suffering serious injuries or passing away. In most cases, there are obvious signs that a stroke is occurring, whether those are outward signs or signs that come back with medical tests.
Anyone who goes into a hospital, clinic or doctor’s office with signs of a stroke should receive immediate care. This is a condition so common that there is almost no reason to miss that it’s happening. If a medical provider fails to identify and treat a stroke, then they may be held responsible for medical malpractice if others in the field would have been able to recognize and treat it.
What are the major signs of a stroke?
There are several signs of strokes to watch out for depending on the area of the brain that is affected. Most strokes will have some common symptoms such as:
- Paralysis or numbness on one side of the body
- Trouble walking
- Confusion or difficulty understanding others
- A headache with vomiting
- Slurred speech
Looking at these symptoms, you can see that they do overlap with other conditions. For example, slurred speech and confusion could be a sign of many kinds of medical problems, including an overdose. That being said, there are blood tests that medical providers can order to confirm that a stroke is happening. There are also imaging tests that may be used to locate blood clots or other causes of strokes.
Medical providers need to take action when a patient is potentially dealing with a life-threatening condition. If they ignore the signs, then they could be held responsible via a civil claim by either the victim or their survivors — and that’s often the only way to gain some measure of justice.
