Dismissal of the symptoms by the doctors and other medical professionals is probably the most common reason why the doctors are held liable for negligence. The result whenever this happens range from the worsening of the conditions being suffered by the patient. For example only, an undiagnosed splinter or chip in a broken bone may result in the lodging of a piece of bone in soft tissue or internal bleeding caused by the sharp edge of the splintered bone.

As a result of misdiagnosis, there might also be harmful effects on the patient. However, a doctor who has correctly diagnosed a disease or condition may nonetheless fail to properly treat it. Other times, negligence is the result of a doctor attempting a “novel” treatment that fails, when in fact a more conventional treatment would have been successful.