Question about dental malpractice lawsuit?

My previous dentist (in an HMO network) overprepared (removed too much tooth structure) two of my molars for a crown. The crown will not stay glued on because of it. I talked to a lawyer who said dental malpractice lawsuits are harder to prove than medical malpractice. He said the cost of the lawsuit would exceed the cost of getting it fixed. Are there any non profit attorneys that would help me sue if I can't pay the legal fees? I want to have my previous dentist pay to get my tooth fixed by the specialist. I have to go through painful oral surgery (crown lengthening) to get the crowns to stay glued on. I am suffering severely from another dentist's mistake. Does anyone have experience suing a dentist and winning?

Question about dental malpractice lawsuit?
Every state has a board of dentistry that licenses dentists and that is who you contact for peer review. It is a department in state government, if you do a search a result usually pops up for each state. If the dentist is licensed to practice in your state, they must comply with peer review. There is no cost to make a formal complaint and it is mandatory to investigate all complaints. You will be assigned a case investigator and they will handle the complaint. The investigator will contact you to get more information and then they will subpoena the records from your dentist. Whatever the boards decision is, the dentist (if they want to maintain their license) must comply. It won't take longer than several months at the most to get a board decision. In my state, the board sides with the patient about 50% of the time. If you have a valid complaint, it is certainly worth writing the letter to see what the board finds.
Reply:Is there some sort of Consumer's Association that can help you?


Or perhaps a Dental Board where you can get advice or lodge a complaint?


Have you approached the dentist or the company he works for with your problem?


Perhaps even the Amer. Dental Assocn would be somewhere to start.


Keep notes of dates, conversations, and names of people to whom you speak.
Reply:Another option you may consider is review of your claim by the Local Dental Society, which has a peer review committee which will impanel a group of dentists to examine you and determine whether or not dental negligence has been committed. If dental negligence has occured, peer review may award either a refund of the dentist's fees who treated you or fees of subsequent treating dentists who correct, repair, or treat the original defendant dentist's negligent care or treatment. There is no charge for peer review but often it takes many months for a decision, without any recovery for wage loss, inconvenience, pain, suffering, or the consequences of permanent injury. Membership in the Local Dental Society is voluntary. Not all dentists belong, although most do. Your Local Dental Society is listed in the telephone book.
Reply:how exactly do you know that the tooth was over prepared?


fyi, the dentist must remove a minimum of 2 mm from the chewing surface of the tooth. if you have squatty teeth that are only a 4 mm tall anyways then there isn't much left. the dentist could have just gone ahead and done the crown lenthening in the first place (which is what i would have done) but i'm sure you'd be on here trying to figure out how to sue him for that too!





you need to get through your head that healthcare not going exactly as planned is not a winning lottery ticket. it's people like you that are ruining healthcare in this country. rather than performing the best treatment, we end up having to perform the least likely to get me sued treatment. examples of dental malpractice are extracting the wrong tooth, poking you in the eye with an instrument, or various other serious issues. the need for crown lengthening is possibly the most insignificant outcome possible.





finally, you have to keep in mind that it's your own fault that this tooth needed work in the first place. if you had done a better job of taking care of your teeth you wouldn't even be in this position today.
Reply:I would like to tell you that you are not alone. The exact same thing happened to me. I went in to redo a cracked filling on my lower right side. Never had any problems with the tooth since having it filled back in 79 or 80, when I was a teen. When I went home and the anesthesia wore off, I was in a lot of pain. I looked in the mirror and saw that he had completely drilled out the whole back of the tooth, down to the root. Picture the tooth as an O, when he was done, it was a U. Did not know why. I have been in hell ever since. It's been two years now. At first, he said he did not over drill the tooth since the tooth was perfect, no cavities, he said. He also filled the tooth with silver filling and then topped it off with white composite hoping I would not notice. When I asked him, Why is there a grey shadow below?, he said there was a cavity that he did not clean out properly. WHAT? How stupid do they think we are? Needless to say, I lost the tooth. Even a root canal did not save it. There is more to this story, but I can not write a book. Dentist's have a way of justifying their incompetence. After all, we (the patient) are not able to see what they do, and don't have any dental training, so what's the harm. For example, the so-called dentist who has chosen to answer your question, (311) feels the need to blame you. Just imagine the destruction that he causes his patients. No honest dentist will talk down to someone who has obviously been affected in such a way. Pain is no joke. This is what he does not understand. My life was turned upside down. I spend thousands to try and save the tooth. And to try and find someone else to fix the problem, that's a different story. They protect themselves and protect each other. Every dentist I saw told me the tooth had been over drilled and there was nothing they could do.





You need to file a complaint with your Dental Board. Any and all information that is important must be in detail in your letter. They will proceed once they receive your letter. They will ask him for your file including ex-rays. The proof is in the pictures. He has no choice but to co-operate. The Dentist who has honestly answered your question (lohse_per...) deserves a medal. He is one of the few, honest, and sincere dentists that you will find on here. I filed a complaint with my Dental Board and should be getting their decision very soon. It does take time, depending on the individuals case, so be prepared to wait awhile. I will communicate with you, if you wish, and let you know of their decision. I know exactly what you are going through. Good Luck!





It's health providers like tomh311 that deserve to be sued. For, their arrogance and negligence destroys people's lives. They need to have their license revoked. Blaming the patient is NOT THE ANSWER.

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