Dental Advice

Mazzy86

Hi guys.
I've has a fear of the dentist for quite a while but in March finally plucked up the courage to go. Discussed the treatment plan and officially started at the end of March.
I had a pain in my wisdom tooth and the dentist said he'd pull it so I said ok (and signed the forms). While he was pulling it I could feel everything and it started to hurt so I stopped him and said this. He told me it was cause I'd a deep rooted infection. He numbed the area again and continued to pull the tooth.
Afterwards I followed what they said and took the anti biotics but 2 days later I came back (my face swollen to twice it's size) and was told I'd have to go to A&E. I ended up being admitted, taken for emergency surgery (2 days later) to have an abscess drained and spent 4 days (in total) in hospital.
I am now so stressed over all this. I've still a good bit of dental work that needs doing but I really don't know what to do as I am mentally scarred from this experience.
I am also out of pocket due to the hospital bill I've had to pay
the question that I need help on is do I or can I sue this dentist? People have said I should but I am just not too sure.. any advise you can give would be great. Thanks

davo10

Op I am sorry to read about your post op pain and infection, it can be very traumatic when something like this occurs and your concern is absolutely normal and expected.

Wisdom teeth are not easy to extract, I assume the dentist explained this beforehand along with any potential complications.

Post extraction pain and infection is an unwanted occurrence but it is unpredictable. I've done difficult extractions where the patient had absolutely no pain afterwards, I've done simple extractions where the patient has returned a few days later with massive pain and swelling. The most we can do is explain the risks pre op, extract the tooth the best way possible (and this can still be difficult even for the most highly trained and skilled operators) and prescribe post op analgesics and antibiotics. The dentists was right to refer you to a&e and you received the necessary treatment to combat an acute infection. You do not mention any nerve damage or long term physical effects beyond the pshychological trauma of what occurred, which means the tooth was extracted without damage to the surrounding anatomy, op the infection was unfortunate but beyond the control of your dentist, it happens and this is why we advise people to have their wisdom teeth out only when necessary ie infected.

DoYouEvenLift

Did he take an xray before all of this?

Mazzy86

DoYouEvenLift wrote: »

Did he take an xray before all of this?

Yes he did. Quite a few actually.

Mazzy86

davo10 wrote: »

Op I am sorry to read about your post op pain and infection, it can be very traumatic when something like this occurs and your concern is absolutely normal and expected.

Wisdom teeth are not easy to extract, I assume the dentist explained this beforehand along with any potential complications.

Post extraction pain and infection is an unwanted occurrence but it is unpredictable. I've done difficult extractions where the patient had absolutely no pain afterwards, I've done simple extractions where the patient has returned a few days later with massive pain and swelling. The most we can do is explain the risks pre op, extract the tooth the best way possible (and this can still be difficult even for the most highly trained and skilled operators) and prescribe post op analgesics and antibiotics. The dentists was right to refer you to a&e and you received the necessary treatment to combat an acute infection. You do not mention any nerve damage or long term physical effects beyond the pshychological trauma of what occurred, which means the tooth was extracted without damage to the surrounding anatomy, op the infection was unfortunate but beyond the control of your dentist, it happens and this is why we advise people to have their wisdom teeth out only when necessary ie infected.

Thanks for replying.
I was always of the understanding (as are my friends and family) that if u have an infected tooth or absese that the dentist should never touch the tooth till the infection is gone.
Is this not right?
On the consent form I signed the side effects did state infection but didn't state anything about maybe having to go to A&E or surgery

davo10

Mazzy86 wrote: »

Thanks for replying.
I was always of the understanding (as are my friends and family) that if u have an infected tooth or absese that the dentist should never touch the tooth till the infection is gone.
Is this not right?
On the consent form I signed the side effects did state infection but didn't state anything about maybe having to go to A&E or surgery

I'm afraid that is mistaken, a commonly held one. The optimal treatment for the patient is to remove the source of the infection at the earliest opportunity. Sometimes, if the infection causes restricted opening, the operator will prescribe an antibiotic to reduce the infection and allow better access to the tooth but otherwise, the sooner the tooth is out, the better. Often dental abscesses will not respond to antibiotics as long as the tooth is still there, by prescribing antibiotics and telling the person to come back in a week, all that happens is that the person with the dental infection has a further week of pain and swelling. If you had a rusty nail in your foot, do you leave it there for another week or do you take it out, allow the infection to drain and the tissues to heal with the aid of antibiotics?

Oral Surgeon

Op, threatening to sue someone really is the nuclear option and would be a last resort IMO.

It sounds like you had a traumatic extraction experience and that certainly is regrettable/ unfortunate..... No one here can judge if your treatment was suboptimal based on your description. As stated, teeth can be removed with active infection it can make numbing the area and access a little more difficult... This common misunderstanding that you can't touch a tooth with an active infection is rubbish and probably one that dentists are guilty of putting out there as most infections tend to arrive unannounced and with no prior appointment- best to send them off with a prescription and tell them that I couldn't possibly take the tooth out today!!!

Post op infection is a risk of all extractions, more so difficult extractions and more so previously infected teeth. Most post op infections can be managed on an outpatient basis with oral antibiotics, you are very unlucky to have required admission to hospital.

Op, your dentist did not set out to do any harm and was probably doing all he could to treat your bad tooth. As explained to you pre-op infection is possible and thankfully that has been treated now.

I would first discuss this with your dentist if you have concerns.

If you are still not happy, see http://dentalcomplaints.ie

Then you could consider a legal route but in my experience, this should be reserved for clear cases of negligence and not known possible complications of treatment.

Good luck,
Os