A young patient from Manchester has received a £10,000 pay-out from her dentist after two of her teeth had to be removed due to the dentist missing the early signs of decay during repeat examinations. Matilda Bruchard, 16, of Whalley Range, had been visiting Dr Robert Pridding at the Wood and Wolfstein Dental Practice in Chorlton since she was five years old and developed dental problems at the age of nine.
Matilda visited the dentist after she developed extremely bad toothache but was sent home with toothpaste for sensitive teeth instead of being treated for tooth decay. After repeated visits to the dentist due to the pain, Matilda was finally given an x-ray which showed that one of her molars was very badly decayed.
Following the missed diagnosis, Matilda swapped to another dentist and her two back molars had to be extracted as they could not be saved. She told the Manchester Evening News ‘I’m really conscious of… when I laugh because it shows off the holes at the back of my mouth.’ She added that it was ‘horrible’ to think that this could have been avoided with an early diagnosis.
Dr Pridding commented that he was ‘pleased’ with the settlement and wished Matilda well with her future dental treatment, adding ‘I always strive to provide the best possible care for my patients.’