Mrs K had been a regular patient of her local dentist throughout her childhood and into her adult life.
At age 22, Mrs K was told by her dentist for the first time that her canine tooth was unerupted in the roof of her mouth. Her dentist advised her to leave it and that the tooth would fall out naturally.
Two years later, the canine tooth had not moved. Mrs K contacted orthodontic specialists to consider her options. The baby tooth was removed to allow space for the canine to come down naturally. However, the canine still did not move. Mrs K therefore underwent a complete uncover of the canine under general anaesthetic. She then had a brace bracket and chains fitted and at each further appointment, the orthodontist applied gradual tension to the tooth to attempt to bring it down manually.
By 2013, it was clear that the treatment had been unsuccessful and Mrs K had to undergo an operation for auto-transplantation of the canine tooth. She was told that her tooth would have been much easier to move had the treatment been carried out when she was an adolescent, rather than as an adult.
Mrs K brought a claim in dental negligence for the failure of her original dentist to identify the unerupted canine and refer her for specialist orthodontic treatment when she was a child.
Independent expert dental evidence confirmed that Mrs K’s dentist should have palpated for the presence of the canine in the gum when Mrs K was a child. If this had been done, on the balance of probabilities, it would have led to the diagnosis of an impacted canine when Mrs K was around 13 years old and referral to an orthodontist would have been made and treatment commenced at that time.
As a result of this failure, Mrs K had to endure more extensive and lengthy orthodontic treatment than would have been required had the treatment taken place earlier; she paid privately for the orthodontic treatment which she would not have needed to do had she been referred as a child under the NHS; she suffered root resorption of her two upper incisors; and she is likely to lose the canine completely in the future and require implant replacement.
Whilst no formal admission of liability was made, the Defendant made a five-figure offer to settle the claim, which Mrs K accepted.
The family were represented by Danielle Young. If you would like more information or advice on pursuing a claim for compensation, please contact a member of our Clinical Negligence team on 0800 024 1976.