Misdiagnosis of autoimmune diseases can cause long-term harm

A study from the University of Cambridge warns that doctors who dismiss symptoms of autoimmune diseases as psychiatric or psychological somatic can cause permanent harm.

Conditions such as lupus Vasculitis It is often misdiagnosed and has serious consequences for the patient's physical and mental health. The researchers have identified a “fragment of misunderstanding and misunderstanding” between clinicians and patients with systemic immunological rheumatoid disease (third). This often leads to misdiagnosis that undermines trust in healthcare, and has profound long-term consequences, they said.

The impact of patient experience and mental health

Mixing methods research, Published in Rheumatologywe analyzed responses from two cohorts of third patients. These included 1543 and 1853 patients, respectively, and featured in-depth interviews with 67 patients and 50 clinicians.

patient' depressionanxiety, and mental health were assessed through validated equipment and patient-designed surveys. Participants also provided insights into medical and medical experience.

Over 80% of patients dismissed their symptoms as psychiatric or psychological somatic, and reported that comments such as “it's in your head” hurt self-worth. For 72%, this experience continued to be upset even decades later.

Participants were asked if they had ever been misdiagnosed in a psychiatric or psychological condition, such as depression, anxiety, or psychosis. Muscular Encephalomyelitis/Chronic fatigue syndromedysfunction, strokeautonomic nervous system disorder, Fibromyalgiaor Antiphospholipid syndrome. They were also asked if the clinician attributed their symptoms to psychological, psychological, or lifestyle causes.

Distrust in healthcare

Patients who experienced misdiagnosis had higher levels of depression and anxiety, and more patients had lower levels of mental health. They were also more likely to report low satisfaction with all aspects of healthcare, distrustful of doctors, neglecting symptoms and avoiding seeking medical care.

Lead author, Dr. Melanie Sloan, a public health researcher at Cambridge University, highlighted the complexities of diagnosing autoimmune diseases. “There are so many possible combinations of symptoms that patients often continue to return to them. [general practitioner] There are multiple different symptoms that are difficult to be attributed to a particular illness at first,” she said. Medscape News UK.

Sloan cited one general practitioner who likened the diagnostic challenge to finding an autoimmune needle on the roof of a psychosomatic or psychiatric hay. Misdiagnosis often occurs when doctors attribute symptoms to mental health conditions without taking autoimmunity into consideration early.

Sloan supported the suggestion that multiple symptoms that begin later in life are more likely to be immune-mediated disorders than psychological symptoms. These types of misdiagnosis had the most severe effect on happiness. The researchers found that there was no correlation between people who were diagnosed correctly within a year and those who took more than 10 years to their scores of mental well-being.

Duplicate symptoms and misunderstandings

Sloans include many of these traits, in addition to mental health symptoms that occur during the course of the disease. Neuropsychiatric prodomelike some Multiple sclerosis People who experience depression several years ago with detectable lesions.

Previous studies suggested about 50% Systemic lupus erythematosus The patient was initially misdiagnosed. Many accumulate multiple psychological and/or psychiatric diagnoses both before and after the diagnosis. Lupus person or Rheumatoid arthritis He said he has mental health symptoms such as depression, anxiety, or mania, which could be an early sign of the effects of the disease on the brain, and that he has clear, detectable or testable symptoms. “This is a direct part of mental health and illness, which further complicates the situation.”

This complicates the diagnosis. In some cases, the initial psychiatric diagnosis may have been correct, but the supposed cause was incorrect. Furthermore, rejection or misdiagnosis can lead to depression and anxiety, further strengthening the psychiatric label.

Clinicians underestimate the impact

In this study, we found that most of the clinicians interviewed were aware of the long-term harm caused by these misdiagnosis. Some explained that they feel relieved by telling patients that their symptoms are most likely to be psychological or stress-related. “They were trying to help with the serious impact we found in this study,” Sloan said.

In a press release, Mike Bosley, co-author of Autoimmune Immunity Patients, stressed the need for clinicians to understand how this type of misdiagnosis can cause long-standing mental and emotional harm, highlighting the loss of trust in doctors. “Everyone needs to understand that autoimmune conditions can exist in these abnormal ways,” and “listening carefully to patients is key to avoiding the long-term harm that mental health and psychological misdiagnosis can cause.”

Seek for change

Campaign Director Angie Davidson comments on behalf of Lupus Trust, which investigated the study. Medscape News UK: “I repeat the damage caused by patients who have experienced this type of misdiagnosis over and over again. It's sad to see these results, but it's just anecdote.”

Davidson urged healthcare providers to correct past misdiagnosis if a conclusive autoimmune diagnosis was made. She noted that many patients are afraid that they will be judged by future doctors looking at the list of previous “diagnosis.” A written revision can acknowledge that these previous misdiagnosis is likely to be part of the onset of autoimmune.

Sloan, Bosley, and Davidson received funding for this study from Lupus UK and Lupus Trust.

Dr. Sheena Meredith is an established medical writer, editor and consultant at Medical Communications, and has extensive writing for medical professionals and the public. She is qualified in medicine, law and medical ethics.