Unauthorized dental work

Why not talk to the dentist instead of a load of random MNers?

OP which country are you in? you keep ignoring this question and it’s really relevant if you want helpful responses.

I’m guessing so as the Op mentions a bill for the work done on her ND child in hospital.

It might be helpful to know that the Op is not talking about the crowns that are put on adult teeth. She means hall crowns, which are used on baby molars ( back teeth ) as they are less invasive than doing traditional fillings.

The Op says SS ( stainless steel ) crowns in her first post but some people might have missed that.

They don’t cause any pain so they are good for children with dental anxiety or other issues.

So the GA was probably because the child can’t coperate with treatment, not because it was painful like an extraction of adult teeth.

dislaimer - I’m not a dentist but hopefully I’ve explained that correctly.

You've been asked a few times if you're in the UK, and if not was it private treatment, is there a reason you're not replying to these questions? People can't give appropriate advice without the full story.

It would be helpful if you clarified which country you are in, otherwise you are going to get a lot of irrelevant advice based on the assumption the dental work was carried out in a UK NHS children's hospital.

Gums grow naturally in a child of this age , as teeth and jaws grow. There is no circumstance in which a child of this age would need gum grafts.

Even if they had had an accident , which happens often, which tore a lot of gum off front tooth , it will , in a child , grow back.

Because of the way stainless steel crowns are fitted it may look a mess immediately afterwards but will do no long term damage.

If a child is having a GA for dental work it's normal to do an exam under anaesthesia and do all the work needed, this is to prevent repeat GAS. I would be surprised if any community/peadiatric dentist did not consent for work as needed because if a child needs an anaesthetic for as simple a procedure as a halls crown then you would not be able to do a thorough exam before they were asleep, and also chances are they would need further GAs for every procedure.

There's no such thing as gum recession in a 4yo. He will not need grafts, he is still growing.

If your child needed a general anaesthetic for the stainless steel crown, the normal practice in the U.K. is to warn you that more work may be needed once the child is under anaesthetic as it’s often only then you can get a good look around.

It is gold standard to get treatment done of any teeth, even if they look just a bit dubious, done in one general anaesthetic session. You would not schedule a second just to discuss treatment. Hence the treatment plan normally warns more work may have to be done.

Unfortunately that often means a lot more treatment and often extractions because in order to see decay in baby teeth you need good vision and x rays which are often not possible in children of this age when they are awake and particularly if they are nd.

You do not do gum grafts on a child of this age and stainless steel crowns are pre made and will come out when baby teeth come out and are the gold standard for treatment of decay in baby teeth. They cannot cause damage but because they are pre-made you may see tooth underneath that makes it look like gum recession.

This sounds like standard practice for children who are having a general anaesthetic.

"Thank you. Yes I signed the paperwork for the single crown nothing else. It shows clearly on the itemized preemptive bill I received the week before that it is for one crown only."

If OP was billed for the child's treatment, then this work was not done in the UK on the NHS, as there would have been no charge at the point of care.

So either the OP is not in the UK, or the work was done in a private hospital. Either situation - no point suggesting a complaint to PALS which is a NHS parient liaison service.

This is in America/not UK?

I think it would be worth a complaint so she can improve practice for future.
I’d be surprised if the consent form you presumably signed didn’t have some sort of caveat included for extra work needing doing

I'm assuming that you have no dental training. If that is the case, you cannot possibly know by looking whether the work was required, if it was done properly, if there is an issue with the gums and if a graft is required.

Get a proper second opinion. You will work yourself into a state by Googling.

What are you hoping to gain by instructing a solicitor?

If you’re after money I doubt you’ll get any sort of a big payout once the fees are covered, and that’s IF they are found to be negligent.

If you’re after improving care then I would suggest speaking to PALS at the hospital in the first instance. They can clarify exactly what treatment was done and why, and you can raise your concerns to the team and see what their response is.

Are you in the UK? Every dentist I've ever had (NHS, Bupa and independent) has explained what they are doing beforehand and how much it will cost.

Four crowns even on adults is major - I need some dentistry and have to have it on both sides but the treatment is being split because they won't numb both sides.

Did she decide to just go ahead rather than subject him to two rounds of anaesthesia? Did you sign a consent form?

Guys pack it in with the judgement of her child’s teeth. Problematic oral hygiene is pretty common in ND children, which is due to a number of possible reasons: limited types of food due to aversions, fear of teeth brushing, medications to name but a few. The strategies/routines we have for our NT children may not be appropriate in ND children and I’m sure it’s not through parental laziness, otherwise why would she post.

@dragonmumof2 did you sign a consent form? If so, did it specify the specific tooth or include a caveat like +/- Proceed? Or additional procedures as necessary? It’s pretty common that something like that is added, although should be mentioned. It would depend on their consenting procedure. Was it done at a hospital?

Did you sign something before the treatment?

Why a lawyer 🙄
If he needed the work he needed it. Speak to the dentist who was almost certainly acting in your child’s best interests. YABU.

I thought that a crown needed a mould making at a previous appointment, (unless it's different for first teeth), so you would have been aware that was happening.

m receession is associated with poor oral hygiene and will not be the result of crowns just being fitted. Meaning the gums were recessed before. If the molar broke it probably had a very large cavity.

She may have realised the other teeth were also in a state and decided to do the work there and then so as not to risk anaesthetic twice. Which is very sensible.

Why are your child's teeth in this state in the first place?

The dentist should NOT have done work without parental consent. Doesn't matter if NHS or private. Speak to a lawyer, definitely unethical at the very least. Don't go back to this dentist.