Top 10 Dental Negligence Complaints
Of all of the enquiries we receive for dental negligence the most frequently recurring can be categorised quite simply. The public of course can be forgiven for not being completely familiar with the technical aspects of such claims but it is true to say that those who have suffered any of these complications in treatment are likely to be significantly more aware of them than patients generally.
In reverse order then;
No. 10 Adverse Chemical / Drug Reactions
A number of potential failures here; first the patients’ medical history (usually taken at registration but rarely updated) often includes a condition for which regular medication is necessary. Contra indications (potential reactive situations with other drugs) are overlooked when prescriptions are given out. This is certainly on the rise with increasingly large numbers of complainants reporting that even when existing medications are raised with the prescribing dentist there is still either no or no accurate advice on potential reactions. Other complaints can be from anaesthetic (too much being administered or a simple allergy) use or even latex allergies (gloves). Of course sometimes such allergies are simply not known at the time of contact and if they are a substantial duty falls on the patient to communicate.
No.09 Dental Injections and Needle Stick Injuries
Damage through inappropriately located injections such as into the lingual nerve or the inferior alveolar nerve. Repeated injections to anaesthetise a stubborn tooth can be damaging in the short term with reported paraesthesia of the surrounding area. Patients are naturally very worried by such a condition and the complaint made to a Solicitor is always that the condition is “permanent”. This is rarely the case however, in some circumstances recovery can be more prolonged and if the damage to the nerve is substantial it may require further intervention.
No. 08 Oral Infections
Often these are infections that appear as an abscess and an inappropriate amount (sometimes none) of antibiotic is prescribed. The infection persists and deepens and the abscess increases in pressure and pain intensity. Occasionally the infection is not present on patient presentation but either poor sterilisation of instruments or vigorous descaling can expose sensitive areas to contamination. Most infection cases are resolved either by the intervention of a Dental Hospital or by the client re-registering at a second dental surgery after confidence is lost in the clinician. We have dealt with instances of abscesses going untreated or insufficiently treated and the resultant bone damage is significant. We are fortunate that brain abscesses and the resultant fatalities are exceptionally rare in the UK largely through a system of excellence in primary care.
No. 07 Orthodontic Repair and Cosmetic Alteration
A significant source of enquiry. It would seem that the boundaries between orthodontics and cosmetic dentistry are blurring. Increasingly dental surgeries offering orthodontic correction are doing so not just for children but also for adult correction of protrusion of front teeth, crowding, overbites and gaps in teeth. The most regularly received complaints in this category relate to prolonged pain, suffering and infection from ill-fitting or badly fitted orthodontic braces. Secondary to that are the much rarer but significantly more damaging issues of orthodontic surgery gone wrong.
No 06 Periodontal Disease
This is something of a misnomer as it would appear that complaints of periodontal disease are not high on the list at all and in fact if we are to be 100% accurate, there are so few of these complaints as standalone issues that periodontal disease would simply not make it on to this list at all. However, periodontal disease accompanies so many other dental complaints that by a process of aggregation it is a stand out issue for our clients. No doubt that like the turnstile jumping thugs of the New York subway system, if we could screen out the dentists that overlook periodontal disease we could save so many other issues even arising.
No 05 Bridgework and Crowns
A very difficult category to pin down because of the variation in treatment negligence. Ultimately it would be fair to say that the majority of such complaints relate to inappropriate fitting. Either the crowns are poorly fitted in orientation (cosmetically poor) or that they overhang and capture food material leading to infection, or that they simply require refitting several times. Occasionally early failure raises as a problem and with bridgework this is amplified several times as the bridge is frequently hung from inappropriate or badly founded posts. In almost all cases the work required to bring to satisfaction is nearly always substantially more expensive than the original treatment and usually requires significantly more time in the chair. Complaints in this area are rife and treatment planning and clinician inexperience (which should lead to referrals) are usually at the heart of the issue.
No 04 Dental Implants
Almost all enquiries from this aspect of dental negligence are also suffering from a plethora of other complaints. Dental implants (ignoring cosmetic issues) are most frequent in those individuals whose poor dental hygiene may have resulted in prolonged exposure to infection, they may well have extensive filling and restoration work and they are unlikely to be the most active in pursuing a new leaf of dental care post treatment. Consequently, the implants are open to infection, both at the preparation stage and post fitting. The implants often bear the brunt of use given that other teeth are missing or heavily restored and they are frequently prioritised over other treatment because of a desire to see “improvement” in a smile rather than better oral health. Again poor diagnostics, advice and planning are often at the heart of such complaints.
No 03 and NO 02 Endodontic Procedures and broken instruments.
No quibbling here, the biggest issue is root canal treatment (rct). Rct that has gone wrong, led to infection or has resulted in a retained instrument tip is a favourite among complainants. It occurs with such satisfying regularity that if a day goes by without a RCT complaint coming in, we check that our web page hasn’t accidently been taken down. Other endodontic issues include sinus perforation but these exist only to the factor of 1 in 100 general rct issues (although sinus perforation is usually rct related).
No 01 Extraction Negligence
Of course, the number of enquiries related to bad extractions is easily the biggest source of enquiry that we have.
If you feel you may have been the victim of dental negligence then please contact us free on 0800 169 1325 or by e-mail on enquiries@applebys-law.co.uk.