I have two front teeth which have always been crooked. I asked my dentist about options to fix them and he suggested I get two dental crowns that can make the teeth look straight. I agreed. He did the crowns and the teeth certainly did look straight, which is good, but I was having a lot of sensitivity to both hot and cold. I called the office and they said that was normal for the first month or so. I’d never had a crown before so just took them at their word. A few days later, I developed pain. Then the area to the right of my nose all the way up to my eye swelled up. I went to see my doctor with an urgent care appointment. He said that it looked like a dental problem to him and suggested an emergency dentist that is a friend of his. They got me in that day and told me that I have an abscess and need a root canal treatment and new crowns because mine have open margins. She showed me the x-rays and the margins are huge. I’ve scheduled an appointment with her to have this done. In the meantime, she gave me some antibiotics to get the spread of the infection under control.
I called my other dentist in order to get a refund because I’m going to have to redo all their work, plus get some extra work done. I was floored when their receptionist told me that once they do the work, I am responsible for the care of the crowns and will be receiving no refund. I asked “Even if the problem was the dentist’s fault?” But she insisted it wasn’t and that he does great work. Is there anything I can do to get a refund?
Jane
Dear Jane,
I’m sorry you had to experience this. You may have realized this already but sensitivity to hot and cold is not normal after a crown. Indeed, they can be a very good sign that there is a tooth infection. Your first priority is to get the root canal treatment done. This is important. Some people put that off when the antibiotics kick in and they’re in less pain. However, those antibiotics will run out and the infection will blow back up.
Once you have the treatment you need it will be time to get tough with your other dentist. The good news is that you have x-rays that show the open margins on the crowns. Leaving those violates the standard of care. Your original dentist should have run an explorer around the margins to make sure this would not be an issue. Either they neglected that or did not want to deal with re-doing the crowns.
Here are a few things you can do to encourage your dentist to do the right thing. First, tell them you will be speaking to the dental board. No dentist wants that to happen. Make sure you let them know that you have diagnostic proof of them doing the crowns incorrectly. You can also tell them that you will be writing a very thorough review of their lack of both skill and ethics in their work and posting it everywhere. But, if they are willing to do what is right and return your fee you will let people know that they made it right. If none of that works, then I would get a lawyer to write them a threatening letter with their official letterhead on the document. This will make the dentist worry that you’re willing to go to court and almost always works.
This blog is brought to you by Tulsa Dentist Dr. Ryan Noah.