How Dental Malpractice Can Become Fatal
People put their trust in their dentist for everything from routine checkups to invasive oral surgery. In most cases, dental work will be carried out successfully and the patient can go about their life. But this isn’t always the case. Dental malpractice cases are among the most underreported medical malpractice cases around, but dental malpractice can be life altering or even deadly.
Dental malpractice occurs when a patient suffers injury or death due to a dentist’s negligence or inexperience. Dental malpractice often stems from:
Misdiagnosis
Dentists should have no issue detecting oral diseases, should they be present. They are trained to seek out and determine when a patient is suffering or at risk of oral diseases, such as oral cancer and periodontal diseases.
Surgical Errors
Like any other kind of surgeon, dentists have a wide array of mistakes they should avoid. Wrong-site surgery, wrong-patient surgery, and lack of preparation can all lead to surgical errors. These errors could leave patients with injuries, like bleeding and swelling gums, as well as nerve damage, which could affect or eliminate the ability to talk, taste, or eat properly.
Infection
With a lack of proper sanitation or cleanliness, something as simple a routine checkup or cleaning could turn deadly. Dental infections can often form into an abscess and could spread to the jaw, neck, or head and cause further complications. In some cases, the infection could make its way into the bloodstream and could quickly become fatal.
Anesthesia Errors
Heavy dental procedures often require anesthesia to to keep a patient calm, collected, and pain-free. Anesthesia is often made up of one or more drugs. However, without proper instruction or by administering the incorrect amount of anesthesia, a patient could easily suffer an overdose.
When medical malpractice occurs, it is negligence plain and simple. Nobody should have to suffer the consequences of someone else’s negligence.
If you or a loved one has been injured, or if you have lost a loved one due to dental malpractice, don’t wait. Contact the law offices or Berger and Lagnese today to schedule your case consultation by calling 412-471-4300 or contact online.