Table 8 Six possibilities for a diagnosis failing in aboutness on the level of compound expressions
From: Diagnosis, misdiagnosis, lucky guess, hearsay, and more: an ontological analysis
| Problem | Where it fails first | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Noninstantation, asserted type exists | Level of compound expression | Disease instantiates a different type than the stated type, but the stated type exists |
| Noninstantation, asserted type does not exist | Level of reference | Disease instantiates a different type than stated, while the stated type of disease does not exist |
| Disease nonexistence | Level of reference | The disease instance does not exist |
| Organism nonexistence | Level of reference | The organism instance does not exist. In this case, there could not be a clinical picture properly inferred and thus it is not a misdiagnosis although it could still be an ICE. |
| Disease non-inherence | Level of compound expression | The disease inheres in a different organism than the one stated. For example, the doctor mistakenly ascribes Mr. Johnson’s hypertension to his twin. |
| Configuration is not located in that part of spacetime where the diagnosis says it is located. | Level of compound expression | A diagnosis of type 2 diabetes mellitus 5 years ago is wrong because the patient didn’t have the disease at that time, even though the patient has type 2 diabetes today. Also, a diagnosis that the patient has an upper respiratory tract infection today when in reality the infection resolved two weeks ago. |