Man orders doctor to perform a test which could have ultimately saved his life

A man coming off a long plane flight noticed that his calf was swollen, the skin was tight, the back of his knee ached and it felt warmer than the other leg. He went to the doctor immediately and told him that he suspected phlebitis which he had had twice before. The young doctor refused to give him a Doppler scan which was a definitive test for the condition. The man then told him that he had already had the condition twice before and knew what the symptoms were. The doctor only gave in when the man became really insistent. The scan revealed a blood clot and he was immediately hospitalized and given anticoagulation treatment. After five days in hospital he was fine. When he had previously been afflicted with the condition, he had developed a blood clot in his lung which required two weeks in intensive care, caused amnesia and he needed to take a year off work. His costs also amounted to $200,000.

Source: summary of medical news story as reported by Port Charlotte Herald

Related Disease Topics:

• Phlebitis
• Blood clot

Related Symptom Topics:

• Swollen calf
• Tight calf skin
• Ache in back of knee
• Increased temperature of affected limb

Article Source Details

About: Man orders doctor to perform a test which could have ultimately saved his life

Date: 29 December 2004

Source: Port Charlotte Herald

URL: http://www.sun-herald.com/NewsArchive2/122904/tp15ch16.htm?date=122904&story=tp15ch16.htm

Related Medical Topics

This summary article refers to the following medical categories:

• Misdiagnosis (type of Medical misadventure)
• Misdiagnosis and swollen calf
• Misdiagnosis and tight calf skin
• Misdiagnosis and ache in back of knee
• Misdiagnosis and increased temperature of affected limb
• Misdiagnosis and phlebitis
• Misdiagnosis and blood clot
• Diagnosis
• Diagnosis and swollen calf
• Diagnosis and tight calf skin
• Diagnosis and ache in back of knee
• Diagnosis and increased temperature of affected limb
• Diagnosis and phlebitis
• Diagnosis and blood clot
• Medication
• Medication and swollen calf
• Medication and tight calf skin
• Medication and ache in back of knee
• Medication and increased temperature of affected limb
• Medication and phlebitis
• Medication and blood clot

More News Topics

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