Malpractice justified for Lingual Nerve Injury due to Oral anesthetic procedure?

[InventMe]

I recently suffered from a Lingual Nerve Injury due to administration of oral anesthesia during a tooth extraction. Dental Ln injuries are usually associated with wisdom tooth extraction which this was not, so it was certainly due to the administration of the oral anesthesia, whereby the injection directly tears the nerve. There was no malice or intention of this on part of the dentist, but I wonder if it was ineptitude. He is an experienced seemingly highly professional dentist at a public dental clinic. It now seems that this injury is permanent and does affect my quality of life greatly.

Question: Is there a malpractice suit here or grounds for settlement with clinic? Thanks much...

 

[LdiJ]

I recently suffered from a Lingual Nerve Injury due to administration of oral anesthesia during a tooth extraction. Dental Ln injuries are usually associated with wisdom tooth extraction which this was not, so it was certainly due to the administration of the oral anesthesia, whereby the injection directly tears the nerve. There was no malice or intention of this on part of the dentist, but I wonder if it was ineptitude. He is an experienced seemingly highly professional dentist at a public dental clinic. It now seems that this injury is permanent and does affect my quality of life greatly.

Question: Is there a malpractice suit here or grounds for settlement with clinic? Thanks much...

This is not something where you should be trying to get answers on an internet forum. Get an appointment with a medical malpractice attorney for a review of your potential case.

 

[quincy]

… There was no malice or intention of this on part of the dentist, but I wonder if it was ineptitude. He is an experienced seemingly highly professional dentist at a public dental clinic. It now seems that this injury is permanent and does affect my quality of life greatly.

Question: Is there a malpractice suit here or grounds for settlement with clinic? Thanks much...

I agree with LdiJ. You can ask for a copy of your dental records and take them to a malpractice attorney in your area for a personal review.

Have you spoken to your dentist about the injury? Have you seen another dentist for an opinion?

 

[InventMe]

Thanks much LdiJ and esteemed quincy... Yes, the dentist is aware of the injury , and this will be the second follow-up consult, at which point I expect he will refer me to a specialist to try low level laser nerve regeneration, based on my research. I'm just getting on this at the last minute prior to a June 4 appt. w the dentist in question (in 4 days.) My timing and coordination is such that I'll go from the clinic location down to nearby Santa Fe to meet w a personal injury attorney on the unrelated medical matter attended to by quincy a few days ago. So, looking at Zinda Law Group right now, not so sure that they are apropo for my interests in both. Wondering if there is a means to DM you quincy once I put final detail to my summary for presentation of the MCO complaint. I see that there is a 'conversation' option upon hovering over profile icon, but not sure if this is public or private, and "This member limits who may view their full profile." I can beef up my profile for transparency and contact info, just juggling a lot right now...

 

[quincy]

Thanks much LdiJ and esteemed quincy... Yes, the dentist is aware of the injury , and this will be the second follow-up consult, at which point I expect he will refer me to a specialist to try low level laser nerve regeneration, based on my research. I'm just getting on this at the last minute prior to a June 4 appt. w the dentist in question (in 4 days.) My timing and coordination is such that I'll go from the clinic location down to nearby Santa Fe to meet w a personal injury attorney on the unrelated medical matter attended to by quincy a few days ago. So, looking at Zinda Law Group right now, not so sure that they are apropo for my interests in both. Wondering if there is a means to DM you quincy once I put final detail to my summary for presentation of the MCO complaint. I see that there is a 'conversation' option upon hovering over profile icon, but not sure if this is public or private, and "This member limits who may view their full profile." I can beef up my profile for transparency and contact info, just juggling a lot right now...

I am glad you started off by returning to your dentist to see what he can do about the injury. That is almost always the first best step to take. It sounds like your dentist has been responsive to your concerns, which is good.

As a note, it has been my long-standing policy on this forum to not respond to questions off the main board. Sorry.