can i sue my dentist?

[islabebe]

a few months ago I went to a new dentist to get a check up. I had cavities. My dentist saw a cavity that i had that his fellow dentist needed to do for an exam at a dentistry school...i went to the school and the cavity that i was going there to get filled was a small cavity. well, the dentist that did the exam on me got the ok to do a different cavity instead. he took for ever just drilling away at my tooth...and then the novacaine started to wear off and it hurt every bad like he was drilling at my nerve. the examiners checked it after he was done and it hurts as they checked it. they let him fill it. then after made him take the filling out and put a temp in and the main examiner told me to go to my dentist and they would fill it for free. so went to my normal dentist and he put a permanent filling in it and sent me on my way. after that it was very sensitive to hot and cold and even to something as simple as the wind hitting in as i walked and talked. i thought nothing of it because its normal to be sensitive after a filling. but recently i started to have unbearable pain on the one side of my mouth and it just got worse. then i went to a new dentist and she took x-rays and said that my tooth is dying and i need a root canal. i spent 1200 dollars out of my own pocket on something that could have been prevented if they did their job the right way.

can i sue?

[ariastar]

Of course you can sue. But can you win?

[Tayla]

What state of USA residency did this happen? What waiver- If any did you sign for the IN PRACTICE Dental student to work on your cavity?Again name your state.

[barry1817]

Originally Posted by islabebe

a few months ago I went to a new dentist to get a check up. I had cavities. My dentist saw a cavity that i had that his fellow dentist needed to do for an exam at a dentistry school...i went to the school and the cavity that i was going there to get filled was a small cavity. well, the dentist that did the exam on me got the ok to do a different cavity instead. he took for ever just drilling away at my tooth...and then the novacaine started to wear off and it hurt every bad like he was drilling at my nerve. the examiners checked it after he was done and it hurts as they checked it. they let him fill it. then after made him take the filling out and put a temp in and the main examiner told me to go to my dentist and they would fill it for free. so went to my normal dentist and he put a permanent filling in it and sent me on my way. after that it was very sensitive to hot and cold and even to something as simple as the wind hitting in as i walked and talked. i thought nothing of it because its normal to be sensitive after a filling. but recently i started to have unbearable pain on the one side of my mouth and it just got worse. then i went to a new dentist and she took x-rays and said that my tooth is dying and i need a root canal. i spent 1200 dollars out of my own pocket on something that could have been prevented if they did their job the right way.

can i sue?

Being a patient for a state dental board exam may have had you sign away some the protections that you would have had if a licensed dentist did the treatment.

I do get concerned that when a patient has had problems with a dental board situation, and is told that they must get further treatment, at a later date, that this might be a way to deal witht he problem, but it will be a very difficult road to climb.

[islabebe]

thank you for the reply. yes i am totally aware that i had to sign papers which makes them not responsible for anything that may go wrong. but the fact that my actual dentist just took the temp filling out and put a new one in and overlooked the problem and continued to send me on my way with decay still in my tooth would that be malpractice on his part?

[islabebe]

i am from pennsylvania and i didnt read the waiver bc i thought eh my dentist said that the guy was gonna fill a tiny cavity no big deal. but i was wrong. it was down at a college dentistry school . i was going to call the dentistry school and explain but i signed a paper so i dont know

[ecmst12]

Never, EVER sign anything without reading it.

[Adalaide78]

You are often not required to even sign those papers. I recently had a referral to a surgeon and they handed me a stack of paperwork with one of the papers being the you can't sue for malpractice one. I took the paperwork back up with that not signed and confirmed that they would treat me if I refused to sign it. I had a dentist do a root canal after I wasn't properly numbed. I was crying in pain and blacked out and he didn't stop, it's not like you can talk with a drill in your mouth. I don't sign the you can't sue someone paperwork after that and many places will treat you without it, while some won't.

[barry1817]

Originally Posted by islabebe

thank you for the reply. yes i am totally aware that i had to sign papers which makes them not responsible for anything that may go wrong. but the fact that my actual dentist just took the temp filling out and put a new one in and overlooked the problem and continued to send me on my way with decay still in my tooth would that be malpractice on his part?

There is new literature being presented that leaving decay in the tooth, if sealed from air may in fact be beter for a patient than removing all decay. While this flies in the face of previous dental experience, one must be aware of all aspects of dental treatment as well as the literature in order to have the best way to present a case.

so a person arguing that decay was left in the tooth needs the literature about the argument for leaving decay in before going that road, so that no surprises exist and your expert can deal with the issue should it arise.