US patient sues dentist for performing 8 crowns, 4 root canals and 20 fillings in one visit
- Citing her significant injuries, the patient is seeking at least US$50,000 in damages in her lawsuit against the dentist in Minnesota
- The lawsuit includes an expert opinion from another dentist who says so much dental work in a single visit is ‘impossible to achieve’
A patient is suing her Eden Prairie dentist after he performed eight dental crowns, four root canals and 20 fillings in a single visit, according to a newly filed malpractice lawsuit.
Kathleen Wilson of Minneapolis says she received negligent treatment from Dr Kevin Molldrem, of Molldrem Family Dentistry, in July 2020 that caused significant injuries. Her civil action, filed ahead of the holiday weekend in Hennepin County District Court, accuses Molldrem of grossly exceeding the safe dosage of anaesthesia and falsifying medical records to show he did not give Wilson an unsafe dosage.
It includes a scathing expert opinion from a Florida dentist contending that so much dental work in a single visit is “impossible to achieve if … done properly.”
Molldrem did not respond to messages seeking a response to the accusations. He was served a summons in person at his office at 800 Prairie Center Drive on December 20. Wilson’s lawyer, Nathaniel Weimer with the Minneapolis personal injury law firm Tewksbury & Kerfeld, also did not respond to requests for comment.
Molldrem’s website says he opened the Eden Prairie office in 2004 “to provide the type of dental care for others as I would want for my own family.” A second location later opened in Lakeville.
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Wilson was left with significant injuries that required follow-up care from other providers to repair Molldrem’s negligent work, according to the lawsuit. Beyond medical costs, Wilson said she suffered pain, embarrassment, disfigurement and distress. She is asking for at least US$50,000 in damages.
Her legal team retained Dr Avrum Goldstein, of Naples, Florida, to review her medical records from Molldrem and subsequent providers. Goldstein’s November 14 report identified various duty of care breaches.
According to the report:
Wilson consulted Molldrem on July 7, 2020. She returned a week later for the procedures under IV sedation and local anaesthesia.
The expert noted that Molldrem made the right diagnosis, but said he provided poor-quality treatment. Wilson had decay on “virtually every tooth in her mouth, something that is quite rare,” Goldstein wrote. Molldrem’s attempt to restore all Wilson’s teeth in one visit did nothing to address her susceptibility to disease or the potential of losing teeth, he said.
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“Katie required a slow, thoughtful, careful and measured response to her disease. Trying to fill every hole in every tooth in her mouth in one visit is not only the antithesis of what was indicated, it is not humanely possible to achieve in an effective or constructive manner,” Goldstein said, adding that it was “inconceivable” to address 28 teeth in 5 1/2 hours.
One challenge of a long appointment is maintaining adequate anaesthesia, Goldstein said. The maximum dosage is 490 mg. Molldrem administered 960 mg to Wilson.
Wilson’s records show that Molldrem said he administered eight tubes of dental anaesthetic known as carpules. But Goldstein found the first dose alone was eight carpules, and he administered 15 carpules throughout the visit.
Wilson went to a different dental office for an evaluation showing recurrent decay and other damage. For several months in 2022 she was treated at the University of Minnesota Dental School “for repair and replacement of many of her restorations in an attempt to stabilise her mouth”.
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Goldstein said that patients have a “finite capacity for dental treatment” and noted the challenges of dental anxiety. If all of Wilson’s teeth end up having to be removed and replaced with implants, Goldstein said “all of the work that was done and all of the expense associated with it will have been for nothing”.
“This not only impacts the economics of her dental needs, it impacts the emotional trauma associated with extensive dental treatment.”
