20 fillings, 4 root canals, 8 crowns in one visit add up to lawsuit for Minnesota dentist
A Minnesota dentist has become the subject of a malpractice lawsuit after his patient accused him of "disfiguring" her.
The civil lawsuit was filed in Hennepin County, Minnesota last week by Kathleen Wilson, who alleged Dr. Kevin Molldrem and Molldrem Family Dentistry caused her significant injury that is still being corrected.
According to the suit, Molldrem performed more than 30 procedures on Wilson in a single July 2020 visit, doing eight crowns, four root canals and 20 fillings in one go. The lawsuit alleges that the dentist "perform[ed] this work improperly," resulting in pain and suffering, embarrassment, emotional distress, and disfigurement.
Molldrem was likewise accused of using improper levels of anesthesia during the procedures and falsifying medical records to cover it up.
Treatment called 'inconceivable'
“It is inconceivable that Dr. Molldrem could have prepared and placed 8 crowns under these circumstances in the time allotted, not to mention the additional 20 restorations,” wrote Dr. Avrum Goldstein, a dentist and expert witness brought on by Wilson's attorney, in an affidavit.
Goldstein, who is a faculty member at NOVA Southeastern University, also wrote that Wilson had been correctly diagnosed as having a "rare condition" causing decay in almost all of her teeth, but Mollderm's course of action was not a proper form of treatment.
"[Wilson’s] required a slow, thoughtful, careful and measured response to her disease,” he said in his report. “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 humanly possible to achieve in an effective or constructive manner.”
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The lawsuit also accused Mollderm of tampering with medical records to falsify the amount of anesthesia that was reportedly used, which in reality was nearly double the standard number of units, according to court paperwork. According to Goldstein, the maximum dose of anesthesia given in three hours should not exceed 490 mg, but Molldrem's records show he gave Wilson 960 mg.
“Any negative cardiovascular or central nervous system outcomes could be tied to the local anesthetic overdose," he wrote.
Wilson said in the suit that she has since had to have the dental work completely redone by other dentists to repair Molldrem’s “negligent work," an ongoing process that has caused her to lose income and rack up medical bills on top of enduring pain, suffering and embarrassment. She is seeking more than $50,000 in damages.
Wilson's attorney and Molldrem did not immediately respond to request for comment.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kathleen Wilson's Minnesota dentist did 30 procedures at once: lawsuit
