(NPR) – Errors in diagnosis are relatively common among older people. The reasons are many: older adults may have multiple conditions, take many medications, and illnesses can look very different in older people than they do in younger ones. Older adults may show different symptoms or none at all. And sometimes health care workers assume that whatever is bothering the patient is “because of your age.” All this can lead to older patients being either under-treated or over-treated.

Sometimes there are even worse outcomes. According to a recent study by researchers from Johns Hopkins University, almost 800,000 Americans die or are permanently disabled each year because of diagnostic errors. (Read More)