Bad dentist/ Bad Implants/Out $40,000.00

[lou277]

I need help! I am from Wisconsin, and I trusted a dentist in Chicago to place zygomic implants in my upper arch as I had no bone left to do regular implants. $40,000.00 later, I have nothing in my mouth. The last time I was in his office was in March 2024, a year and one monthafter placing the implants, The permanent denture broke off, and I later found out that 3 of the 5 implants had failed. He was supposed to place the final denture in July 2023, however, his assistant kept telling me it takes a long time to make them. I asked him when the dentist would be looking in my mouth. I told him I paid the dentist for his expertise, and all I am getting is a dental assistant who does not know what he is doing. He told me the dentist only looks at the scans. After my initial surgery in Feb. 2023 the temporary denture broke 12 times. Each time, I had to travel to Chicago and sit for 7 hours . The fix would last maybe a month and then break again. He charged me $5000.00 for dentures that were supposed to fit over my mini implants on my bottom arch. He replaced mine with acrylic dentures that also broke several times. He never placed o rings or housings in the holes. He put blue like paper liner in the denture and said it was a new technique. My previous lower dentures were fine , however, the dentist said I had to have new lowers to match my new uppers. He threw my lower dentures away. He claimed that he gave them back to me, but he did not. I could write a book on all the mistakes, that were made. The dirty office and equipment. The lack of dentist supervision. It took him 10 months to look into my mouth, and that was only because of the infection that was so bad, the assistant did not know what to do. I have photos of my mouth and the infections. It took them 2 weeks to call in a prescription for an antibiotic.. When I left his office in March, I knew I would need my records. I asked for my records verbally and made a written request as well. Today, August 5, 2024, I just received what he claims are my records. There is not one x-ray, patient notes, or anything else that you would normally find in a dental record. He sent me lots of forms. Some I had seen and signed, but most of the forms I had never seen, but they do have my forged signature on them. He copied my signature from one form to another. The forgery is so obvious. So I gave the office a call and my call was immediately forward to a recording that states the person whom you are trying to call no longer will be taking phone calls from this number. So he blocked me from calling, texting, or emailing him. Now I contacted an attorney in Chicago, and they said it would not be worth it to take him to court. They said by the time I pay the attorney, there will be little money left to get my dental work done. I was hoping that all the photos and recordings that I had would help me get my money back. But with no attorney, I doubt I will be able to use any of them. I am sure you are thinking why did I stay with them for so long. All I can say is he had $40,000.00 of mine and I had no money to hire someone else. I kept praying that it would get better and that the final result would be good. I can't eat, sleep and I am in constant pain. I do not go out of my house. I was working as a photographer, which I quit. How can I smile at my clients with no teeth. I am broke financially now and I do not know what to do. Any suggestions that anyone has would be greatly appreciated. Lou Ann

 

[lou277]

Is there anyone out there that cares. I opened my post to see if anyone took the time to read my post or could provide any suggestions, I guess no one reaches out anymore.

 

[Dr M]

Sorry to hear about your case. It sounds like everything went belly up. In cases where you have severe rehabilitation needed, it would have been better to see a specialist, such as a prosthodontist in order to do the treatment. This sounds like it might have been too complicated for a normal dentist to take on.
That being said, have you tried reporting the relevant dentist to the regulatory body of your country. There should be an avenue you could follow, where they could investigate him.
Also see if you can contact another lawyer specializing in medical negligence for a second opinion.