LOCAL WOMAN SUFFERS YEARS OF TOOTHACHE AFTER DENTIST BOTCHES TREATMENT

• 34-year-old Jacqulin Campbell from Slough still suffers from pain after the poorly planned orthodontic treatment
• £6,750 awarded in compensation

Miss Jacqulin Campbell, a 34-year-old emergency services worker from Slough, Berkshire, has won £6,750 in compensation from her local dentist with the help of specialist dental negligence solicitors, The Dental Law Partnership. The dentist’s failure to assess Miss Campbell’s teeth properly before fitting a teeth straightening device, known as an Invisalign aligner led to years of dental trouble for Miss Campbell. She also suffers from extreme sensitivity after the dentist filed away too much of her enamel.

From June 2015 to August 2016 Miss Campbell visited Dr Elinda Rodrigues at Cippenham Dental Centre, Slough.

“I wanted the gap between my front teeth closed,” Miss Campbell said. “So I had braces fitted and they worked well, the gap closed and I was happy. It was when my teeth began to move apart again that I first realised I had problems.”

It was December 2015 when Dr Rodrigues fitted the first Invisalign aligner. In January 2016 and again in June of that year, Miss Campbell returned to have tooth enamel filed so that there would be room for her teeth to straighten. Despite this, she had to visit Dr Rodrigues for a second time that month as her front teeth were beginning to crowd and overlap once more.

“I was in so much pain,” Miss Campbell stated. “The Invisalign aligner felt very tight. If I took it off for five minutes I could feel my teeth moving and you could see the gap open up. So the dentist gave me an implement like a nail file so that I could file my own teeth at home! My teeth were already so sensitive, I couldn’t bite or chew food without experiencing pain.”

At the same appointment Dr Rodrigues recommended a retainer, which was fitted the following month in July. Miss Campbell’s retainer then fell out the very same day.

“I couldn’t believe it,” Miss Campbell said. “It felt like I was at the dentist every other week having adjustments made, bars fitted between my teeth, or a new retainer. Then when it fell out I began to think I needed to go elsewhere for my treatment.”

Miss Campbell visited a new dentist who removed her fixed retainer, replacing it with a removable one to help close the newly opened gap. Her new dentist also broke the news that she would need to have cosmetic work to her upper front teeth to repair the damage caused.

At this point Miss Campbell contacted the Dental Law Partnership. Analysis of her dental records revealed that Dr Rodrigues had failed to use reasonable skill and care in the planning of orthodontic treatment from December 2015 onwards. She had also removed excess enamel from Miss Campbell’s teeth, which led to the increased sensitivity at her tooth.

“The whole process was awful. Looking back on it I can’t believe I was told to file down my own teeth at home. My teeth are far worse now than when I first visited Dr Rodrigues. I can’t chew food without pain, I can’t have hot or cold drinks because of the sensitivity in my teeth, it’s a nightmare,” Miss Campbell went on to say.

Christine Salter of The Dental Law Partnership commented: “The distress and pain our client experienced was completely unnecessary. If the dentist had carried out adequate treatment in the first place, all of her problems could have been avoided. We hope the compensation she receives goes some way towards paying for any additional treatment required.”

The Dental Law Partnership took on Miss Campbell’s case in November 2016. The case was successfully settled in May 2018 when the dentist paid a total of £6,750 in an out of court settlement. The dentist admitted liability.