The pitfalls of premature closure: clinical decision-making in a case of aortic dissection.
Premature closure is a type of cognitive error in which the physician fails to consider reasonable alternatives after an initial diagnosis is made. It is a common cause of delayed diagnosis and misdiagnosis borne out of a faulty clinical decision-making process. The authors present a case of aortic dissection in which premature closure was avoided by the aggressive pursuit of the appropriate differential diagnosis, and discuss the importance of disciplined clinical decision-making in the setting of chest pain.
Saba University School of Medicine, Devens, Massachusetts, USA. bharatk@alumni.upenn.edu
Bharat
B
Kumar
Balavenkatesh
B
Kanna
Suresh
S
Kumar
D000784:Aortic Dissection / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000601:surgery; D017545:Aortic Aneurysm, Thoracic / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000601:surgery; D002637:Chest Pain / Q000175:diagnosis; D003657:Decision Making; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D004562:Electrocardiography; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D014057:Tomography, X-Ray Computed