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Little-Known Disorder Looks Just Like Dementia — but Can Be Reversed

  • April 19, 2017

A completely reversible disorder that mimics dementia and affects an estimated 770,000 often goes undiagnosed, CTV News, Canada, reports. This means that thousands of patients whose doctors assumed they have Alzheimer’s or Parkinson’s may be bedridden in nursing homes when their real diagnosis is normal-pressure hydrocephalus (NPH) — a condition that is treatable with a surgery.

This reminds me of similar situations where children and adults are misdiagnosed every day across the U.S. According to the Institute of Medicine, most people will suffer from at least one wrong or delayed medical diagnosis during their lifetime, with diagnostic errors thought to contribute to 10 percent of U.S. patient deaths.

And like those who are incorrectly diagnosed with dementia for a surgically-fixable condition, if you’re the one being misdiagnosed, the consequences can be devastating. Diagnostic errors are often incredibly harmful to patients as they may lead to delays in treatment, lack of treatment, inappropriate or unnecessary treatment. This, in turn, can have physical, psychological and financial consequences. This is one reason medical errors are the third leading cause of death.

So, if you find yourself in a situation where you need to be hospitalized or are given a diagnosis of a serious disease, you need to not only ask questions and seek second opinions, but to appoint an advocate who can do this for you. Since many tests and treatments can do more harm than good, question everything done to you thoroughly beforehand, and if you’re not satisfied with the answers, follow through with a demand for a second opinion.