A NORTH East man has been given thousands of pounds in compensation after an inadequate tooth extraction had devastating consequences.
Mr Ian Willis, a 39-year-old mechanical engineer has been awarded £2,500 from his local dentist, helped by dental negligence solicitors, the Dental Law Partnership.
Mr Willis suffered toothache that prompted urgent dental attention. Consequently, he went to see Dr Zagorowski at Aycliffe Dental Practice in Newton Aycliffe, where he agreed to undergo a tooth extraction, in a desperate attempt to ease his suffering.
As a result of the poorly executed tooth extraction, Mr Willis was then referred for urgent out-of-hours dental care for a sinus injury and faces extensive surgical work for chronic infection.
“A couple of years ago, I was experiencing an agonising toothache that came on all of a sudden,” Mr Willis explained. “I went to see Dr Zagorowski at my local dental practice, which I had been visiting for a decade, because at the time I believed that they could help.”
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Unfortunately for Mr Willis, this was only the beginning of his problems.
“I chose to go ahead with extraction of the tooth,” Mr Willis said, “I was really nervous about the procedure, but believed that if the tooth was removed then it was impossible for the pain to continue.”
The extraction, however, did not go as planned.
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“I was distraught when Dr Zagorowski informed me that my sinus was damaged during the extraction,” Mr Willis said. “All I wanted was my suffering and sleepless nights to come to an end. Dr Zagorowski then prescribed me some antibiotics and referred me to an urgent out of hours dental appointment for further treatment.”
It was only then that the true extent of Mr Willis’ dental problems was revealed.
“I visited the out of hours practice in excruciating pain and with a swollen face,” Mr Willis said.
“Upon examination I was told that I had suffered an injury to the floor of the right maxillary sinus. In order to fix this, I may need future surgery to address chronic infection of my sinus.
“However, my Grandad had recently undergone a sinus operation that was extremely traumatic, and this has left me feeling anxious about going through the same procedure.”
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Mr Willis contacted the Dental Law Partnership in 2020. Analysis of his dental records revealed that the client has suffered avoidable injury following extraction of his upper tooth. This has caused ongoing nasal obstruction, and he may face extensive surgery in the future to address this.
If Dr Zagorowski had undertaken a preoperative radiograph, then the risk to the sinus floor would have become apparent, meaning that this could have been avoided.
“I really struggle eating food that I used to love, it has taken away the pleasure of going out with friends for meals and socialising. I am also really anxious about visiting the dentist now.”
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Amir Arif of the Dental Law Partnership said: “The distress and pain our client has experienced was completely unnecessary. If the dentist had carried out adequate treatment, his problems could have been avoided.”
The Dental Law Partnership took on Mr Willis’ case in 2020. The case was successfully settled in 2021 when the dentist paid £2,500 in an out of court settlement. The dentist did not admit liability.
Aycliffe Dental Practice declined to comment on grounds of patient confidentiality.
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