Time Stamps:
00:00 Introduction
00:12 Failed Dental Implants
01:06 Procedures on the Wrong Tooth
01:38 Pulling Teeth or Extractions
02:11 Crown Issues
02:56 Failure to Diagnose

5 Common Reasons for filing a Dental Malpractice Lawsuit

Thank you for joining us for this episode on dental malpractice. Today, we’re going to be talking about 5 common reasons for filing a dental malpractice lawsuit.

Failed Dental Implants

The failure of dental implants is one of the biggest dental malpractice issues today. There are several reasons an implant might fail. First, the dentist placing the implant does not have the proper credentials or experience required to correctly perform the procedure. Second, a dentist may not have the imaging technology to engage in proper preoperative planning. Third, the dentist may not properly study the patient’s medical history. For example, the dentist should check to see whether the patient has high blood sugar; a condition that affects the immune system; and whether the patient is taking bisphosphonates or other drugs that might affect osseointegration.

Procedures on the Wrong Tooth

If a dentist pulls the wrong tooth or performs a root canal on the wrong tooth, for example, this is inexcusable. It can only happen if the dentist gets sloppy, whether it’s because he or she is in too big of a hurry or just not being careful.

Pulling Teeth or Extractions

Extractions can be brutal, and it often takes a lot of force to remove a tooth from a patient's jaw bone. Sometimes, people can get hurt badly during a tooth extraction. For example, a dentist might injure a nerve during the extraction. Other times, a dentist might fracture the jaw bone. Another risk of extractions is a severe infection. Finally, a patient may suffer TMJ injuries as a result of an extraction.

Crown Issues

There are several issues that can arise from bad crown work. For example, you might see an open margin, which is a gap between the natural portion of the tooth and the synthetic portion or the crown. Another issue that might arise as a result of a poorly placed crown is overhang, also known as overhanging restoration, which essentially means that the crown hangs over the tooth more than it should. These mistakes in crown placement can lead to painful infections and decay, which can destroy teeth and require the patient to undergo other painful procedures.

Failure to Diagnose

Failure to diagnose is a common cause of all types of medical malpractice lawsuits. In dentistry or dental malpractice, a dentist might fail to diagnose periodontal disease in a timely fashion. Failure to diagnose periodontal disease can result in serious bacterial infections, which cause pain, suffering, and disability. In more extreme cases, the infection can spread to the patient’s blood, causing serious injury or even death.

Another type of failure to diagnose claim will involve the failure to diagnose oral cancer. It’s imperative that medical professionals catch cancer at the earliest opportunity. Untreated oral cancer, just like most forms of cancer, is no exception and can cause death. Thus, failure to diagnose oral cancer is a major cause of dental malpractice claims.

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