'I trusted my dentist. What they did was so bad nobody else would treat me'
29.10.2023 - 17:15
/ manchestereveningnews.co.uk
A truck driver has been awarded £35k after botched dental treatment left his mouth in such a state that other dentists wouldn't go near him.
Huge errors meant Paul Cauldwell was forced to have a whopping six teeth removed – with two more extractions expected in the future.
The 52-year-old, from Manchester, was left in agony and unable to chew until he finally found a practice willing to treat him.
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It all started in March 2017 when his Bolton-based dentist told him he could have three implants to replace his denture.
Sadly, the first set of implants didn’t settle properly because Paul didn’t have enough bone in his gums for the implants to work – despite X-rays showing this problem.
“I was in a lot of pain and went back to the practice twice to get them reinstalled,” he said.
After being seen by numerous dentists at the practice, Paul was referred to another dentist in a different location in July 2018. There, he learned he should never have had the implants done in the first place because he was suffering from periodontal disease.
Periodontal disease, or gum disease, is an infection of the tissues that hold the teeth in place.
It's typically caused by poor brushing and flossing habits that allow plaque, a sticky film of bacteria, to build up on the teeth and harden. It starts with swollen, red, and bleeding gums.
Sadly, the disease had already started eating away at Paul’s bones. The trucker tried to find corrective surgery in the UK but quickly realised dentists were reluctant to take him on due to the state of his mouth.
Paul was