Dental negligence can profoundly impact your life; from pain to loss of confidence and emotional distress, we understand how sensitive a subject it is. Our team is fully trained on dental negligence claims, guaranteeing that you have full support should you wish to make a claim.
We know that a claim won’t undo the damage done, but claiming for compensation can be the step you need to alleviate your financial stress. It can help you with further treatments you need and other medical expenses you may incur from the negligence.
Dental nerve injuries are always extremely upsetting, as they tend to be both debilitating and permanent in most cases. There are many nerves that can be injured during dental procedures, but the most commonly injured nerves are the inferior alveolar nerve and the lingual nerve. These can result in paraesthesia (characterised by a tingling sensation), dysesthesia (pain and burning), and anaesthesia (complete numbness).
Tooth Extraction
Wisdom teeth extractions, in particular, can cause nerve injuries. Although this is a common, recognised complication, you need to be informed of the risk prior to the extraction. Your dentist also needs to take into consideration how close your wisdom tooth is to the surrounding nerves.
To ensure the dental extraction goes as smoothly as possible, your dentist needs to conduct a thorough assessment that includes x-rays to help explain to you the risks. Although wisdom teeth are the main tooth extractions that can cause nerve damage, other tooth extractions can be as problematic and the same negligence factors apply.
Root Canal Treatment
This invasive procedure involves your dentist or dental practitioner removing both the nerve and the pulp from the affected tooth, which proceeds to be cleaned and sealed. Root canals can result in nerve damage if, for example, the cleaning irrigant (sodium hypochlorite) is injected into surrounding tissues in the mouth.
The jaw can be damaged alongside the nerves, as the opening of the root canal and damaging surrounding nerves can result from negligence.
Implant Treatment
Dental implants are often a great solution to return confidence and a beautiful smile. When dental practitioners are negligent, however, they can deepen the distress. Nerve injuries from implants can result from two main acts of negligence.
Your dentist can drill too far into your jaw canal by mistake or install implants that are too long for your jaw, which proceeds to place pressure on the nerves.
Inferior Alveolar Nerve Injuries
Wisdom teeth extraction, root canal treatment with over-instrumentation or overfilling of a tooth, or dental implant placement can lead to an inferior alveolar nerve injury. Some of the symptoms are:
- Impaired speech
- Drooling
- Pain, tingling, or numbness in lips, gums, or chin
Lingual Nerve Injuries
These types of injuries tend to be a result if wisdom teeth extraction. Some of the symptoms can be:
- Impaired speech
- Numbing, pain, tingling or burning of the tongue
- Loss of taste or altered taste
- Drooling
Have you suffered due to dental negligence? Our No Win, No Fee policy ensures that you won’t have any additional financial strain while making a claim, and should your claim be unsuccessful. Get in touch with our dental negligence solicitors team for a free, no obligation chat on 01772 562084.