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Badly Fitting New Dentures

K

kathekas

Junior member
Joined
Sep 22, 2015
Messages
4
I recently had a full pair of dentures made.

Went through all the different steps.

Went to have them fitted, and went home. When I got home I had problems eating and talking clearly without a lisp (I don’t normally have lisp).

I noticed that the top teeth overshot my own incisors. This caused my tongue to stick on my top lip sometimes when talking and my bottom lip was becoming bruised when I was to eat.
When my jaws were closed I could poke the tip of my tongue between the incisors on my top dentures and my own incisors.

When eating a banana I took a bite and when I looked at piece left in my hand there was a bite mark one quarter of an inch further down the banana.

Met with the dentist and advised her of the problem. She said it was my fault I had not bitten normally when the impression was taken.

I remember when the wax impression was put in my mouth she had me bite about five times into the wax. How could I have bitten incorrectly on 5 occasions?

I went back to the dentist and met with her and the technician. He could see the problem and took some more impressions.

I have now been told I have to pay more money to have the tope dentures corrected/remade.

Is this fair?

Is this correct?

Apparently the dentist is making no extra charge it’s the technician is charging the extra money. The dentists assures me it’s my fault, due to an incorrect bite, she says this has happened many times before to her with other patients.

I feel I am being blackmailed. If I don’t pay the extra money, then the teeth will not be corrected.

Without this work being done then I will not be able to talk or eat correctly with the new dentures.


I would be pleased to receive readers views on this situation.

Thanks for reading.
 
Yes you could have easily "bitten wrong". But it is still the dentist responsibility to ensure that the dentures occlude correctly. Regardless of what a patient says or does. It can be frustrating at times too but it is still my responsibility.
I do not expect your dentist to even think about charging you more money. I must assume that this is a low cost dentist, plan dentist, or something along that line.
 
I agree totally, you should not be charged any more money for the correct dentures making. It sounds like your dentist is incompetent if the tech is saying they have had the same problem with this dentists impressions.

You have paid for a job doing and want it done correctly. There must be somewhere you can report this dentist to if she will not help you. If you have an incorrect bite it is her job to correct it as much as possible.

I am in the UK and can help if you want to know where to start dealing with this.

My dentist had to take impressions a few times to get a correct one for a bridge because we noticed that when I open my mouth my jaw veers to the left making my bite incorrect on the impression. Somehow between us we managed to a good impression but it isn't easy for her.

It is not fair to you, it is not right and it is very very wrong on your dentists part. Bad fitting teeth will effect your jaw eventually causing you problems down the line. :butterfly:
 
I am in the UK and can help if you want to know where to start dealing with this.

Yes please that would be very helpful. I am not in the UK but the dentist advertises registered with the General Dental Council UK.

Thanks
 
Hi go onto the GDC link I am putting here scroll down the patients section, click on the contact us, click on all the links and eventually you will reach a complaint form. Fill it in and they will do the rest. They cannot get you any money or any treatment done. They will look into the complaint and make the dentist answer them on why he has left you in this way.

Go or write to the practice manager or whoever is in place to deal with things like this at his office and get a copy of your dental records. You may have to pay for these. I got mine I think they cost about £20.00 I can't remember now the exact amount. They should be the complete records that the dentist holds for you. I didn't tell them that I wanted them to complain to the GDC because I wanted them as they were. The GDC will in time get their own copy from the dentist and also get in touch with any other dentist you have seen at this time or after.

When I reported a dentist here in the UK he hadn't kept correct records at all.

The GDC will fully investigate and will decide what action is needed for this dentist to continue to practice in a professional manner. They are really good and have different measures for dealing with rouge dentists. Be prepared for this matter to take up to 2 years to reach an end. It will not cost you anything and you may have to attend a court hearing. I didn't but it wasn't until the last minute, and I mean a couple of days before that I found out I didn't need to go.

I wish you well and if I can be of any further help just let me know. You can pm me if you wish

:butterfly:


I have presumed that you are a private patient here.
 
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Heck you were quick, I just went back into my reply to add a bit and you had thanked me already.

I hope it helps. I found the GDC really very good. You don't have to go and see them they deal with it all over the phone and from your records. They also contact the dentist and you get a copy of their reply to the GDC as well. :butterfly:
 
Hi, just a quick note to add to what Carole has posted and clarify things a bit:

It's worth noting that the first step is *always* to raise the issue with the practise first - see if they have a complaints procedure on their website. If there isn't a complaints procedure on there, then write a letter to the practice manager setting out the problem clearly and in detail. If you don't feel able to do it yourself, you can ask somebody to approach them or write to them on your behalf - a friend or relative could help with this, or even your local Citizen's Advice Bureau (CAB). The Dental Complaints Service would ask you to do this first anyway, and very often things can be resolved this way without any further intervention being needed.

If that doesn't get you anywhere, then the people to contact are the the Dental Complaints Service (https://www.gdc-uk.org/raising-concerns/raising-concerns-about-dental-treatment). They are run by the GDC, but they are not the same thing as the GDC's system of disciplinary hearings and it's important to note that. The Dental Complaints Service exist to mediate between private patients and dentists to resolve precisely this sort of issue, and I think they would be able to help you. Their process is faster and less drastic than the disciplinary hearings.

I realise it's a bit confusing! They don't make the distinction very clear...


In contrast to this, a full on complaint to the GDC (i.e. their system of fitness of practise hearings) is the nuclear option and should really only be considered a last resort when other avenues have been exhausted. This is the one that can take well over 2 years to resolve and involves a court case - there are easier ways of resolving this sort of issue! If you contact the Dental Complaints Service they should be able to advise you of the most appropriate route for your particular case.
 
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Thanks Tink

Please can you give more details about your comment " a full on complaint to the GDC (i.e. their system of fitness of practise hearings) is the nuclear option and should be considered a last resort when other avenues have been exhausted."

Thanks for helping me.
 
Thanks Tink

Please can you give more details about your comment " a full on complaint to the GDC (i.e. their system of fitness of practise hearings) is the nuclear option and should be considered a last resort when other avenues have been exhausted."

Thanks for helping me.

Hi -

Sure!

So basically the GDC's system of disciplinary hearings is a heavyweight process that is designed for the most serious failings - it takes years (literally) and ends with what is essentially a trial. The hearing is held in public and often reported in the press. It's intended to deal with dentists who pose an actual danger to patients - so those who are persistently incompetent, defrauding the NHS, not adhering to proper standards of hygiene, that sort of thing. The system is also overloaded and currently has a massive backlog of cases to get through.

For resolving a dispute over who pays to replace poorly-fitting dentures, the Dental Complaints Service is a much better fit - they are designed to mediate in precisely these sorts of disputes. If they see fit, they can also recommend that the dentist give you some or all of your money back or make a contribution to the cost of replacement dentures, which is something the GDC do not do. If the Dental Complaints Service did feel that there were signs that the dentist had failings serious enough to merit a GDC hearing, I think they would advise you of that and point you in the right direction.



All of this is jumping the gun a bit though! Step 1, always, is to contact the practise directly and set out your complaint clearly. You never know, that might be enough to resolve the issue.



I hope that helps!
 
Thanks.

I live in Cyprus and the dentist is one who works by herself in her own practice, although in recent weeks a her daughter has joined since qualifying.

She will not discuss the matter and demands that if payment is not made then the dentures will not be sorted.

She advertises that she is registered in the UK and I think she is a member of the BDA.

All negotiations are complete. I am being blackmailed. Not a pleasant feeling.
 
Ok, so resolving it with the practise hasn't worked. At this point you need an external body to resolve it.

Unfortunately I have no idea what the system is in Cyprus - sounds like what you are looking for is some sort of local equivalent of the Dental Complaints Service (they definitely only cover treatment done in the UK). There will be something, but at this point I'm afraid I can't really help you, you need somebody local to you that knows the system.

Sorry!

Hope you manage to find what you are looking for x
 
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