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Dramatic medical error patient due to wrong diagnosis 43 years in a wheelchair
A man from Portugal was in a wheelchair for 43 years because the doctors did not properly diagnose his illness. After more than four decades, the right diagnosis had finally been made. Now the now 61-year-old can run again.
Over four decades in a wheelchair
According to media reports, a Portuguese spent 43 years of his life in a wheelchair because the doctors did not properly recognize his illness. According to the newspaper "Jornal de Notícias", Rufino Borrego learned to walk again within a short time, after doctors realized the mistake. According to the news agency AFP, 13-year-old Borrego was diagnosed with incurable muscular dystrophy in a Lisbon hospital.
For 43 years, a Portuguese was sitting in a wheelchair until a doctor discovered that another muscle disease, other than the one originally diagnosed, was responsible for his condition. Now he can walk again. (Image: bubutu / fotolia.com) Little experience with the rare disease
According to the German Society of Muscular Dystrophies, muscular dystrophies occur worldwide with an average incidence of approximately ten patients per 100,000 inhabitants.
As the experts report on their website, this small number is still divided into the various forms of muscular dystrophy, which differ by inheritance, the onset of manifestation, the preferred beginning in certain muscle groups, the rate of progression and the involvement of other organs.
"Therefore, it is understandable that many doctors with these diseases have little experience," said the association.
There is other muscle disease behind Leiden
The now 61-year-old used a wheelchair for more than four decades after diagnosis, until a neurologist finally realized in 2010 that he was actually suffering from another muscle disease, myasthenia.
This disease is also extremely rare. According to the German myasthenia society (DMG), the frequency is estimated to be about one patient per 10,000 people. "The disease can occur at any age (even in childhood)," writes the DMG.
According to the agency message, the rare disease can be treated simply by taking asthma medication. Only one year after the new diagnosis, Borrego was able to return to his usual café for the first time.
Rare disease was barely known to doctors at the time
Café owner Manuel Melao in the city of Alandroal told the "Jornal de Notícias": "We thought it was a miracle." Borrego, now able to lead a normal life again, emphasized that he had no grudge against the doctors who at that time responsible for the misdiagnosis. Finally, myasthenia was barely known to medical professionals. Borrego stated, "I just want to use my life." (Ad)