Skip to main content

Diagnostic Errors Common in Hospitalized Adults Who Die, Move to ICU

Medically reviewed by Carmen Pope, BPharm. Last updated on Jan 8, 2024.

By Elana Gotkine HealthDay Reporter

MONDAY, Jan. 8, 2024 -- For hospitalized adults who die or are transferred to the intensive care unit (ICU), diagnostic errors are common and are associated with patient harm, according to a study published online Jan. 8 in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Andrew D. Auerbach, M.D., M.P.H., from the University of California in San Francisco, and colleagues examined the prevalence, underlying cause, and harms of diagnostic errors among hospitalized adults transferred to an ICU or who died at 29 academic medical centers in the United States in a retrospective cohort study.

Overall, 23.0 percent of the 2,428 patients whose records underwent review experienced a diagnostic error. The researchers found that in 17.8 percent of patients, errors were judged to have contributed to temporary harm, permanent harm, or death; diagnostic error was judged to have contributed to death in 6.6 percent of the 1,863 patients who died. Patient assessment problems and problems with test ordering and interpretation had the highest opportunity to reduce diagnostic errors in a multivariable model examining process faults associated with any diagnostic error (adjusted proportion attributable fractions, 21.4 and 19.9 percent, respectively).

"Results from our study provide impetus for rapid exploration and testing of interventions seen to reduce diagnostic errors and harms associated with ICU transfers and deaths by targeting gaps in test selection and interpretation and physicians' ability to debias and rethink diagnoses as high-priority areas," the authors write.

Abstract/Full Text (subscription or payment may be required)

Editorial (subscription or payment may be required)

Disclaimer: Statistical data in medical articles provide general trends and do not pertain to individuals. Individual factors can vary greatly. Always seek personalized medical advice for individual healthcare decisions.

© 2024 HealthDay. All rights reserved.

Posted January 2024

Read this next

High Rates of Harassment Behaviors Observed in Obstetrics and Gynecology

THURSDAY, May 9, 2024 -- There are high rates of harassment behaviors within the obstetrics and gynecology (OB-GYN) specialty, according to a review published online May 8 in JAMA...

Personalized Tool Can Predict Infants at Increased Risk for RSV

THURSDAY, May 9, 2024 -- A personalized tool can predict infants at increased risk for severe respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) who would...

Mortality Slightly Increased With Consumption of Ultraprocessed Foods

THURSDAY, May 9, 2024 -- Mortality is slightly higher in association with a higher intake of ultraprocessed foods, according to a study published online May 8 in The BMJ. Zhe...

More news resources

Subscribe to our newsletter

Whatever your topic of interest, subscribe to our newsletters to get the best of Drugs.com in your inbox.