Ms Lynne Haines, a 56-year-old HR advisor based in Penarth, Glamorgan, has been awarded £40,000 from her former dentist with the help of specialist dental negligence solicitors the Dental Law Partnership after periodontal disease was ignored for more than a decade, resulting in huge gaps in her mouth and the loss of several teeth, alongside having a significant impact on her mental health.
Ms Haines had been attending Croft Dental Practice, in Gadlys, Aberdare, as an NHS patient since childhood, and was primarily treated by Dr John Graham between 2001 and 2014. “I had been attending the practice all my life. After I moved to Penarth, I would travel the 44-mile round trip and never missed a check-up or appointment,” Ms Haines recalled.
Despite regularly visiting Dr Graham, Ms Haines was never provided with any advice or indication that there was anything serious wrong with her teeth. During this time, a gap in her front teeth had begun to appear. In 2018, after complaining that her gums were receding, Ms Haines was referred to specialists elsewhere, where it was revealed she was suffering with severe periodontal disease and she was referred for therapy to treat the extreme bone loss.
“By this point, I had a huge gap in my front teeth and many teeth were becoming wobbly. The treatment was painful and intrusive and my mouth was constantly sensitive. I felt so self-conscious that I never smiled and constantly worried. It was a horrible experience and really affected me every day,” Ms Haines recalled.
“In 2020, for the first time in my life I moved to a private dentist in order to have another round of intensive periodontal treatment. They were shocked at how I had been treated, saying I’d undergone years of mistreatment and they advised that the periodontal disease was so severe that I am likely to lose all of my teeth – which was devastating,” Ms Haines explained. “At every appointment I would end up in tears as I was so embarrassed with the state of my teeth, especially as I had always taken care to look after them, and overwhelmed that this is going to be an issue for the rest of my life.”
At her wits end, Ms Haines contacted the Dental Law Partnership in 2020. Further analysis revealed that periodontal disease should have been diagnosed, and treated, as far back as 2001, which would have avoided the catastrophic progression of bone loss that Ms Haines experienced.
“I was so angry that I had put my whole trust in the dentist who had ruined my smile, ruined me and my confidence. My job requires me to do a lot of face-to-face meetings and I hated being on video calls with my camera on throughout the pandemic.” Ms Haines explained. “The disease is under control for now, but I won’t ever get my bone density back and have to be extremely careful looking after my gums and attending appointments. I’ve had some composite bonding now which has fixed the appearance of my top teeth, but I know this isn’t a permanent solution and will need to be replaced in a few years. Whilst I am happy with my appearance for now, the whole experience has left deep mental scars.”
Amy Davey of the Dental Law Partnership commented: “The distress and pain our client has experienced was completely unnecessary. If the dentist involved had undertaken more sufficient examinations at the outset and provided more appropriate treatment, her problems could have been avoided.”
The Dental Law Partnership took on Ms Haines’ case in 2020. The case was successfully settled in December 2022 when Ms Haines was paid £40,000 in an out of court settlement. The dentist involved did not admit liability. Any patients who believe they may have received negligent dental care should visit dentallaw.co.uk.