A teenager says she was left in agony which left her hardly able to eat for several years following botched dental treatment.
Skye Unsworth, from Thornton-Cleveleys, suffered with undiagnosed decay and poor treatment since the age of 12. She was forced to miss school, had difficulty eating.
Now 18, she told LancsLive she has completely lost her trust in dentists.
“When I was 12 years old, I felt really bad tooth pain in my lower mouth”, she said. But added the dentist “didn’t do anything about it”.
While also undergoing orthodontic treatment, she added a second dentist failed to flag anything was wrong with her teeth.. Then in n 2021, she was told there was deep decay in her tooth – which was given a filling.
“It was meant to only be a 30-minute appointment, but the procedure took over an hour and a half. I thought it would be fine as she’s the professional and should know if she’d made a mistake. But the next day I went to eat on the left-hand side of my mouth and it hurt so much it brought me to tears.
Large area of decay in lower first molar
(Image: Dental Law Partnership)
“After that the pain was unbelievable to the point that I couldn’t get out of bed and go to school on some days. I couldn’t eat on the left side of my mouth as it was really sensitive. If I eat or drink anything too cold or too hot, it still shoots pain from that tooth, and to this day I still can’t eat properly on that side.”
Skye’s dad contacted specialist dental negligence solicitors, Dental Law Partnership in 2022 and analysis found the extent of the poor dental treatment she had received. If either of her dentists had identified the decay and treated it, this would have avoided its progression and requirement for imminent root canal treatment and the loss of the tooth in future.
“I’ve been told I need a root canal on that tooth as I’m still suffering from difficulty eating and sensitivity. But since this traumatising experience, I don’t trust any dentists to touch that tooth,” Miss Unsworth explained. “I’m too scared to get further treatment as the slightest bit of pressure hurts.
“I know I need to get it restored soon but the thought of trusting another dentist is too much, and I know I’ll lose that tooth eventually in future too.”
Skye’s case was settled in June 2024 and she was paid £9,000 in an out-of-court settlement. The dentists involved did not admit liability. Any patients who believe they may have received negligent dental care should visit the Dental Law website.
Stephanie Neden-King of the Dental Law Partnership commented: “The distress and pain our client has experienced was completely unnecessary. If the dentists involved had provided more satisfactory treatment, her problems could have been avoided.”
Subscribe to our daily newsletter LANCS LIVE NEWS and get all the biggest stories from across Lancashire direct to your inbox