A student has been awarded £20,000 after having the wrong tooth removed at the age of 13 due to an administrative error.
Courtney Monksfield, now 20, had a healthy tooth removed under anaesthetic in 2017, leaving an unnecessary gap between her teeth.
The dentist mistakenly wrote that she needed one upper tooth and one lower tooth removed, and X-rays showed the gap caused by the incorrect extraction.
She should have had two teeth removed in her upper jaw due to crowding.
It wasn’t until a follow-up visit that it was discovered that she had a perfectly healthy tooth removed.
She has now been awarded £20,000 after the dentist partially admitted and settled out of court.
Ms Monksfield, a student studying archaeology and forensic science, said: “I was devastated when I realised a perfectly healthy tooth had been removed.
“It was a bad feeling and there were so many unknowns about what was going to happen. I was left with a gap in my jaw that shouldn’t have been there. ”
The dentist recommended that she go to hospital to have two teeth extracted to correct the crowding of her upper teeth.
Ms Monksfield said her mother chased the clinic for months to get the referral fee and finally got a referral in December 2016.
However, the referral note stated that one upper tooth and one lower tooth needed to be extracted, rather than the two upper teeth that should have been mentioned.
In May 2024, Ms Monksfield went to the hospital for a general anaesthetic to have the teeth extracted.
She said: “My mistake was revealed at the follow-up after the extraction.”
After months of consultation, Courtney underwent surgery to remove another tooth and transplant it into the gap. She also received orthodontic treatment for her lower jaw.
Because she suffers from infection and tooth decay, the transplanted teeth are unlikely to work long-term. She may need dentures in the future.
Courtney added: “For three months after this transplant, my lower lip felt numb, which meant I had to constantly drink water through a straw to avoid dripping, which also affected my diet.
“I missed a lot of classes to attend my appointments – the whole experience was so distressing.”
Lawyers at the Dental Law Collaborative also found multiple other errors in the referral letter.
Lawyer Amanda Anson said: “The pain, suffering and inconvenience our client experienced was completely unnecessary.
“Her problems could have been avoided if the dentist in question had provided a correct referral.
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