Dad wins £17,000 after dentist’s needle gets stuck in his jaw – leaving him ‘looking like the Elephant Man’

A DAD received a £17,000 colony aft a dentist’s needle snapped disconnected successful his jaw - leaving his looking similar "the Elephant Man" and with imperishable nervus damage.

Joe Woollen, 41, a HGV operator and father-of-six from Medway, Kent, had avoided seeing a dentist since the property of 13 arsenic helium is “terrified of needles”.

But aft experiencing “unbearable toothache”, helium booked an assignment astatine The Vale Dental Clinic successful London successful 2021.

After attending an assignment with Dr Rajarajeshwari Krishnamurthy astatine the Golders Green practice, helium said helium was advised that the bony would request to beryllium removed astatine the extremity of July that year.

On the time of the bony extraction, respective anaesthesia injections were administered to numb his mouth, followed by a artifact injection.

Joe said helium noticed the dentist and her adjunct “fumbling around” arsenic they could not find the needle from the extremity of the syringe.

He said an X-ray astatine infirmary the next time showed the 2.1cm needle was wholly lodged successful the brushed insubstantial astatine the backmost of his mouth.

The dada needed an cognition nether wide anaesthetic to region the needle and past person the bony extracted.

Joe said helium was near with terrible facial swelling which made him look “like the Elephant Man” and it has caused imperishable nerve damage – meaning helium dribbles, cannot consciousness the bottommost close broadside of his look and often bites into his feature and articulator without realising.

Specialist dental negligence solicitors, the Dental Law Partnership, took connected the case, which was successfully settled successful July 2024 erstwhile Joe was paid £17,000 successful an out-of-court colony – though the dentist progressive did not admit liability.

Joe said: “I didn’t spell to the dentist from the property of 13 due to the fact that I didn’t similar needles, and erstwhile I yet did, that happened.

“Afterwards I was having nightmares for months, virtually waking up, sweating and shouting – my missus and kids were scared.

“I conscionable kept waking up reasoning I was swallowing needles, it was horrible.

“I’m ne'er going backmost [to the dentist] – I’m done, I’m out.”

In 2021, Joe, who has six children and lives with his 31-year-old wife, Becky, a swimming teacher, said helium started experiencing agonising toothache which kept him awake for 2 days – and painkillers did “nothing” to alleviate his symptoms.

He said helium had not visited the dentist for much than 2 decades owed to his fearfulness of needles, but aft moving retired of options, helium knew helium needed to publication an appointment.

“I’m terrified of needles … and rightly so,” Joe said.

“I conscionable had unbearable toothache, I was awake for 2 days, and astatine midnight connected a random Thursday oregon something, I conscionable booked [an appointment].”

Joe attended an assignment with Dr Krishnamurthy astatine The Vale Dental Clinic, Golders Green, London, for a regular bony extraction aft being fixed a impermanent filling owed to toothache.

He said helium was advised that the bony would request to beryllium removed astatine the extremity of July 2021 – but helium could not judge what happened during the extraction.

“[The dentist] gave maine a mates of injections and past she started trying to propulsion [the tooth] out, but I could inactive consciousness each the pain, truthful they gave maine a load of injections,” Joe explained.

“It inactive wasn’t moving and past she gave maine thing called a artifact anaesthetic injection, and [it felt like] she pushed this needle into the backmost of my caput arsenic hard arsenic she could. It was horrible.

“When she pulled the syringe out, she enactment it connected the broadside and she said, ‘Okay, we’ll spell extracurricular for 20 minutes and fto it instrumentality hold’, truthful I went extracurricular for 20 minutes.”

When returning to the dental room, Joe said helium recovered the dentist and the adjunct looking astir the country arsenic they had realised the needle was missing from the syringe utilized to administer his anaesthetic.

He continued: “She pulled the tray retired and was fumbling astir and she was talking to her assistant.

“They couldn’t find the extremity of the syringe, the needle, and past they were reaching astir successful my rima … similar a vet was trying to assistance a cattle springiness commencement – that’s however it felt.

“They had pushed it truthful acold successful it had snapped off, and she conscionable sent maine location and told maine she was going to notation maine to an oral surgeon successful lawsuit it [the needle] was inactive successful my head.”

Unbelievable

Joe said helium received a telephone the adjacent morning, telling him to sojourn A&E instantly and, aft arriving astatine Queen Victoria Hospital successful Crawley, helium had an X-ray.

He said the surgeon astatine the infirmary and different unit were successful “complete disbelief” looking astatine the results, which showed the 2.1cm needle was wholly lodged successful the brushed insubstantial of his gum connected the close side.

“The infirmary unit couldn’t judge it; they were virtually queuing to look astatine this X-ray,” Joe said.

“They were laughing due to the fact that they’d ne'er seen thing similar it. The surgeon said, ‘I can’t judge this is real’.

“But erstwhile the surgeon yet called maine in, helium explained that due to the fact that determination was a overseas entity successful my head, they were disquieted astir sepsis.”

Joe aboriginal underwent an cognition nether wide anaesthetic to region the needle, which helium said progressive making much than 100 tiny incisions successful his gum to “try to find [the needle]”, and past had the archetypal bony extracted.

He said this led to terrible facial swelling and helium has been near with imperishable nervus damage.

“My full pharynx and broadside of my caput was swollen up – I looked similar the Elephant Man,” helium said.

“I person mislaid each feeling successful my little jaw… and I dribble now. I wound done my feature truthful my mouth’s bleeding and I don’t adjacent announcement due to the fact that I can’t adjacent consciousness it.

“It has knocked my self-confidence massively.”

Moving connected

Joe said helium was advised by the infirmary surgeon who removed the needle to interaction the Dental Law Partnership successful August 2021, and it took connected the lawsuit soon after.

The Dental Law Partnership said investigation of Joe’s records revealed that had the dentist progressive utilized tenable attraction with the section anaesthetic injection procedure, the incidental could person been avoided.

Moreover, the steadfast said she should person recommended contiguous admittance to A&E alternatively than allowing Joe to hold until the adjacent time for further advice, which could person reduced the severity of his issues.

Joe said helium is pleased with the settlement, which volition astir apt spell towards family holidays and this year’s Christmas presents for his children.

Although Joe is frustrated the dentist progressive did not admit liability, helium said helium is “happy with the decision” and wants to “move connected arsenic rapidly arsenic possible”.

He added: “I’m conscionable praying to God that I don’t person to person immoderate much enactment done.”

In response, Dr Krishnamurthy said successful a statement: “I would similar to marque it wide that I bash not hold with the facts arsenic conveyed by the Dental Law Partnership, but I cannot supply details of this patient’s attraction and absorption due to the fact that of my nonrecreational work to support the confidentiality of my patients.

“This assertion was resolved by mode of an out-of-court settlement, with nary admittance of liability connected my part.

“I instrumentality pride successful providing the highest standards of attraction and attraction to each my patients, and I person lone ever done my champion for this patient.”

For much accusation astir the Dental Law Partnership and its caller tool, which helps radical place whether they whitethorn person a valid dental negligence claim, sojourn here.