When your doctor tells you to fast before a checkup so they can do bloodwork and review your cholesterol levels, it’s important to follow their instructions to ensure that the test results are as accurate as possible. But the blood tests aren’t just about checking to see if your cholesterol is too high – it’s about ensuring that your cholesterol isn’t too low either. A delayed diagnosis of low cholesterol could lead to severe and even fatal health problems.
When Bad Cholesterol Is Too Low
You want your “bad” cholesterol to be low and your “good” cholesterol to be high to maintain good cardiovascular health. Keeping low LDL levels – the bad cholesterol – is critical. But, if your LDL is too low, health risks are possible.
Recent research conducted at the Pennsylvania State University studied over 96,000 people for an average of nine years. The study controlled for age, sex, education, income hypertension, diabetes, and other variables.
Their LDL levels were recorded every two years. Cases of hemorrhagic stroke, caused by the rupture of a blood vessel in the brain, were also tracked. The findings:
- Compared with people in the normal range for LDL (70 to 99 milligrams per deciliter of blood), people with a low LDL (50 to 69 milligrams) had a 65 percent higher likelihood of suffering a hemorrhagic stroke.
- If the LDL went below 50, the risk of a stroke nearly tripled.
- LDL concentrations above 100 were not significantly associated with hemorrhagic stroke, even when the levels went above 160.
Having a high LDL, though, of course, is not harmless. High levels of LDL increase the risk of developing cardiovascular disease and any level over 100 should be lowered, according to the senior author of the study, Dr. Xiang Gao. Though he stresses that a person’s individual risk factors matter more than a general rule. And this is where a doctor’s responsibility to properly diagnose a patient is so important.
Medical Malpractice and Misdiagnosis
A patient is diligent about their health. They see their doctor regularly and try to eat well and exercise but, nevertheless, they are saddled with bad cholesterol levels. Overlooking a health problem because of a person’s seemingly healthy way of life is a sure way for people to suffer needlessly and irreversibly.
It is a doctor’s responsibility to test their patients from head to toe for anything suspicious that may be happening in their body – and bloodwork is a routine part of diagnosing a patient, sometimes diagnosing them with problems they didn’t even realize they had, like bad cholesterol.
When a doctor fails to identify cholesterol problems, a stroke or heart attack could be imminent – and that result is on the doctor. The outcome could be considered medical malpractice. Someone who suffers a stroke, which may have otherwise been prevented, can suffer dramatically and be left with permanent side effects that lead to lost wages and hefty medical bills.
If you have suffered a stroke or heart attack because of a doctor’s missed or delayed diagnosis, contact the Michigan medical malpractice attorneys at Thurswell Law to get the compensation you deserve. Schedule a consultation by calling (248) 354-2222 today. We do not charge any fees until we win.
