"If it hurts, we will either pull it or do a root canal." ???

[Pearce Yaussy]

So apparently, if a tooth hurts, it needs a root canal. Period. According to this dentist. I get there, all they know is that I have a tooth that "hurts", I had given no other details at that point, and they give me a "permission to do a root canal" sheet to sign. I was surprised and said "What? Root canal?" They said, "Yeah, don't worry about it. It's just like getting a filling." Me being the wimp that I am I signed the sheet and let him do the root canal. After all, he's the doctor, right?

So before he even looked inside my mouth he told me again, "If you don't want to lose the tooth I have to do a root canal." I said OK. THEN he finally looked at it and did x-rays. "Yeah, it looks like that cavity there is PROBABLY down to the nerve"
(It wasn't hurting at all at that point, and I couldn't see what he was talking about on the x-ray... Also, PROBABLY??? Yeah, let's do a root canal because you PROBABLY need one... lol)

Anyway, after the fact, I was concerned and called my old dentist (family friend) and told him about it, and he said that was ridiculous and it could have just been filled and been fine, and it most likely didn't need a root canal. Really??? So now I have another dead tooth in my mouth that will harbor even more harmful bacteria and god knows what, and just because this guy apparently wanted to make some money off of me.

...My grandmother has been using this guy for 35 years now, I can see why 3/4 of her teeth are missing. She has apparently has had "a bunch" of root canals...

Any thoughts? Could this be considered malpractice? What can I do about it? lol I'll never tell that guy a tooth hurts again unless it really REALLY hurts...

 

[bcjch]

This guy is the exception, not the rule, I think ... but I wouldn't put hustling a patient past a dentist. As for malpractice, you'd have to prove that, which would be difficult - it would be his word against yours as far as the diagnosis is concerned, and he's still the expert

Incompetence is another story - my sister-in-law once had the same tooth filled 3 or 4 times by the same dentist because it kept hurting. This same dentist did a number of fillings on me, and none lasted 2 years. Usually, the free market will eventually weed these guys out, but it takes a while - the typical patient has very little basis on which to judge a dentist.

The best thing you could do about it is post a negative online review of the practice somewhere online. Mention your grandmother, as well as the differing second opinion you got. But be careful - there is a difference between saying "I have some doubts" and outright libel.

 

[Pearce Yaussy]

As for malpractice, you'd have to prove that, which would be difficult - it would be his word against yours as far as the diagnosis is concerned, and he's still the expert

Well, as far as proving it, I can obtain copies of my x-ray before the root canal was done, and have some other dentists say that it didn't need a root canal (because it didn't). A root canal is for saving an infected/abscessed tooth that can't otherwise be saved, not to fix a tooth that "hurts"... Jeez.

Usually, the free market will eventually weed these guys out, but it takes a while

More than 35+ years though? I think not. The problem is that 95% of people are dumb enough to fall for it. Sad but true.

Dental malpractice:

Your dentist -- and every dentist that practices for that matter -- is charged with a legal duty to comply with the standard of care in treating patients. The standard of care is the level at which an ordinary, prudent dentist -- in good standing, and of same or similar educational background and geographic location -- would administer care under same or similar circumstances. This is simply the legal way of saying that your dentist has a duty to provide care at the same level a similarly educated dentist practicing in your area would provide. If you live in Detroit, MI, your dentist is not held to the same standard of care as a dentist in Alaska or Ohio.