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Why couldn’t an accurate diagnosis be made? An analysis of 1044 consecutive autopsy cases
Author(s) -
Tsujimura Takahiro,
Yamada Yuya,
Kubo Masaharu,
Fushimi Hisako,
Kameyama Masakuni
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
pathology international
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.73
H-Index - 74
eISSN - 1440-1827
pISSN - 1320-5463
DOI - 10.1046/j.1440-1827.1999.00879.x
Subject(s) - autopsy , medicine , pathology , general surgery
The protocols of 1044 consecutive patients autopsied between 1983 and 1997 at Sumitomo Hospital (Osaka, Japan) were retrospectively analyzed and the findings were compared with clinical diagnoses. In 73 cases, the clinical diagnosis apparently differed from the autopsy findings, and in six cases the origin of a malignant neoplasm remained unsolved even at autopsy. Of the 73 discrepant cases, 24 were a result of clinician misjudgment and a neglect to conduct further examinations. Missed diagnosis due to an erroneous pathological report, technical error of endoscopy, and misleading results obtained by new non‐invasive technologies accounted for seven, nine, and 11 cases, respectively. Twenty‐two cases were missed because the clinician could not carry out precise examination. It is concluded that advances in diagnostic technology and medical knowledge have not reduced the value of an autopsy.