Perforated root during root canal procedure

[threedflyer]

Washington State

Had a root canal done back in July of 2009.
Within a very short time I began feeling pain in the tooth that was worked on and I asked my dentist what was going on.
For over 10 months he kept having me come in and gave performed a few minor procedures which did nothing for me.

Finally I decided to pursue a second opinion from an endodontist and a periodontist regarding the issue. They both confirmed that is was a perforation of the root that happened during the root canal procedure 10 months earlier.

The pain was coming from an infection that has formed under the tooth. Basically my body was reacting to the hole in the tooth and trying to get rid of it (reject it).

I had the tooth extracted recently by another DDS and finally confirmed that there was indeed a perforation.

NOW....I have gathered up the costs to do a bone graft, titanium inmplant, an abutment and a crown and I have submitted a letter to the original dentist requesting compensation for the total cost of the new tooth AND a reasonable amount for pain and suffering.

Not only have I had 10 months of pain already, but I will have another year of procedures to get this fixed......

The original dentist has contacted his malpractice insurance and submitted my letter to them. Now I am supposed to be getting a phone call from them early next week. Not sure what to expect? Will they try to deny me? Will they drag me into court? the amount in question is under $15K

Ideas??

3D

 

[ElvinMelvin]

The original dentist has contacted his malpractice insurance and submitted my letter to them. Now I am supposed to be getting a phone call from them early next week. Not sure what to expect? Will they try to deny me? Will they drag me into court? the amount in question is under $15K

There is absolutely no way to predict what the insurance carrier will do. Your best bet is to wait for their call and then come back to discuss options.

 

[threedflyer]

Insurance response

I received a call from the original dentist on Friday.
He claims he spent in excess of three hours on the phone with a representative from his insurance company.
Apparently giving them details about the case.

I have all my facts together and I am prepared for battle.

When I finally get a call from the insurance company, I will post details from the conversation.

Thanks!
3D

 

[barry1817]

dental malpractice

Washington State

Had a root canal done back in July of 2009.
Within a very short time I began feeling pain in the tooth that was worked on and I asked my dentist what was going on.
For over 10 months he kept having me come in and gave performed a few minor procedures which did nothing for me.

Finally I decided to pursue a second opinion from an endodontist and a periodontist regarding the issue. They both confirmed that is was a perforation of the root that happened during the root canal procedure 10 months earlier.

The pain was coming from an infection that has formed under the tooth. Basically my body was reacting to the hole in the tooth and trying to get rid of it (reject it).

I had the tooth extracted recently by another DDS and finally confirmed that there was indeed a perforation.

NOW....I have gathered up the costs to do a bone graft, titanium inmplant, an abutment and a crown and I have submitted a letter to the original dentist requesting compensation for the total cost of the new tooth AND a reasonable amount for pain and suffering.

Not only have I had 10 months of pain already, but I will have another year of procedures to get this fixed......

The original dentist has contacted his malpractice insurance and submitted my letter to them. Now I am supposed to be getting a phone call from them early next week. Not sure what to expect? Will they try to deny me? Will they drag me into court? the amount in question is under $15K

Ideas??

3D

If you wait for the dentist's malpractice carrier to get back to you, it will probably happen after the statute of limitations has expired and you will get nothing.

because you have been aware of this problem, the clock is ticking so you probably need a malpractice attorney to contact them, and to file the law suit to protect your interest.

filing a the lawsuit, within the time limits is the crucial aspect at this time, because once the suit if filed, you normally are protected should the settlement drag out. Not filing, and you may be out of luck, with no recourse financially.

Do this quickly and because of the amount you claim, you are probably out of the small claims court jurisdiction.

 

[Hot Topic]

Be prepared to explain why you continued to go to the same dentist (you should have gone to an endodontist first because they specialize in root canals) for over 10 months when nothing he was doing helped.

I had a lot of pain after my root canal. The endodonist had me take antibiotics to ward off infection (Amox-Clav). The problem ultimately turned out to be that the crown wasn't fitted properly, and a small gap showed up on the x-ray that was taken of the area (the crown had been drilled repeatedly). The crown was drilled down to the appropriate height and I was fine.

The implant includes the abutment. The procedure on another tooth that broke while I was eating took eight months and was $4,000.

I think you're really going to have a bad time convincing a court that you were in so much pain that it was 10 months before you decided to find someone who could help you. You just kept going to a guy who obviously didn't.

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