Why Choose Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors?

We have years of experience in assisting clients who have been left in pain and lacking confidence due to teeth implants or veneers going wrong.

Our dedicated team of dental negligence solicitors is led by partner Russell Sutton, who is a member of the Law Society Personal Injury Panel and a Senior Litigator with the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers (APIL).

All of our dental implant cases are handled by Russell from start to finish, ensuring you receive the very best care, support and expertise available in this specialist area of law.

Find out more about our client service by reading our testimonials or by discovering our ‘excellent’ approval rating on Trustpilot.

Dental Implant Claim FAQs

What are dental implants?

Dental implants are metal posts that act as artificial tooth roots. They are carefully anchored into the jawbone, where they provide a secure foundation for replacement teeth. Once placed, dental implants can be used to hold crowns, bridges or dentures in position. This approach is often chosen to replace multiple missing teeth, helping restore a natural-looking smile and supporting normal eating and speaking.

Dentists performing implant surgery should be restorative or prosthodontic specialists with the proper training and experience in this field of expertise. This is because dental implants are a complicated and invasive form of dental surgery.

Be aware that there is no officially recognised 'registered specialist implantologist' title in the UK, and dentists using this title may be misleading their patients.

What is the dental implant procedure?

Your dentist is obligated to determine whether you are a suitable candidate for dental implants by assessing certain factors:

• Your overall medical health, including your smoking history.
• The health of your gums and other teeth.
• The quality, height, and width of your bone.
• Whether there is enough space for the implant(s).

Your dentist will utilise an array of diagnostic tools, including x-rays, to evaluate your eligibility for implants. If these factors are not properly assessed, you may face implant failure or severe complications following dental implant surgery.

The procedure is typically performed under local anaesthesia. Your dentist will drill a hole in your jawbone, where the implant will be inserted. As the jawbone heals, it will fuse with the implant through a process called osseointegration. Afterwards, you will need to return for the fitting of the crown, bridge or denture.

How long do dental implants take to heal?

The healing time for a dental implant can vary depending on several factors, such as:

• The number of implants placed
• The number of teeth involved
• The individual patient
• How well you manage your recovery process

If you have only one implant and experience minimal post-operative discomfort or swelling, you should be able to resume your normal routine. However, you might be advised to follow a soft diet for a specific duration.

Implant surgery usually requires only local anaesthesia, and it is common to experience minor swelling, bruising, and mild discomfort afterwards. By properly managing these symptoms and maintaining good oral hygiene, you should be able to return to your regular diet within a timeframe of one to six weeks. However, your surgeon should monitor you throughout the process and be able to inform you of this.
 

What are some common complications of dental implants?

While most dental implants are successful, there can be instances of failure. Some complications associated with failed dental implants include:

• Inadequate assessment of a patient’s medical history before surgery, which can prevent the dentist from identifying pre-existing conditions that may cause ongoing issues with the implant. If health problems such as diabetes, osteoporosis or gum disease are not taken into account, they can increase the likelihood of infection, implant failure or slow healing after the procedure.
• Implant loosening due to failure to fuse with the bone, infection surrounding the implant (known as peri-implantitis), or insufficient jawbone quality to secure the implant in place. This can result in discomfort, difficulty chewing and the eventual need for implant removal and replacement.
• Poorly designed or ill-fitting crowns, bridges or dentures, which can lead to implant failure and/or gum infection. When replacement teeth do not fit the implant properly, they can place extra pressure on the surrounding bone and soft tissue, eventually causing pain and loosening of the implant.
• Sinus cavity penetration during implant placement, where the implant enters the sinus space above the upper jaw. This can cause persistent sinus infections, discomfort, swelling and the need for corrective surgery to remove or reposition the implant.
• Failure to diagnose gum disease before implant placement, which can allow bacteria to remain in the gums and jawbone. This infection can then spread to the implant site, making it more likely that the implant will fail and need to be removed.
• Improper implant positioning in the jaw, where the implant is inserted at the wrong depth or angle. This can place uneven pressure on the surrounding bone, affect the appearance of the replacement tooth and increase the risk of implant loosening over time.
• The failure of the implant to integrate with the patient’s bone, resulting in bleeding, damage to the bone and potential failure of the implant. When the implant does not bond properly, it cannot support the replacement tooth and may need to be taken out.
• Implants embedded in the jaw at incorrect angles, which can interfere with biting and chewing, put stress on the neighbouring teeth and cause long-term discomfort. This may also affect the appearance of the tooth restoration.
• Inadequate implant maintenance, leading to premature failure. If the implant is not checked regularly or cleaned properly, plaque and bacteria can build up around the implant site, resulting in infection, gum recession and bone loss.
• Damage to surrounding teeth caused by poor care during surgery, including cracks, chips or loosening of adjacent teeth. This can lead to further dental problems, pain and the need for additional treatments to repair the damage.
• Screws breaking after being tightened excessively, leaving the jaw permanently damaged, the implant unsalvageable and the tooth missing. This can also result in pain, swelling and the need for further corrective surgery to remove fragments of the implant.

After the treatment, your dentist should check for any complications and confirm that your healing is progressing as expected. They should also address any concerns you may have, provide clear guidance on aftercare and take prompt action if any problems arise.

If you believe you suffered due to substandard dental implant surgery, you may be eligible to claim compensation for your injuries. For more information or to discuss your claim contact Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors.

How do I know if I have nerve damage from my dental implants?

Nerve damage can happen during a dental implant procedure if the dentist places the implant too close to a nerve or does not exercise reasonable care while carrying out the treatment.

Symptoms of dental nerve damage after implant surgery can include:

• Numbness in the tongue, gums, lips or face.
• Tingling or burning sensations in the tongue, gums, lips or face.
• Pain or sensitivity in the area that continues beyond the normal healing period of three to five days.

If you suspect you may have nerve damage following your dental implant treatment, it is important to see a dentist as soon as you can. Consult a different dentist if you do not wish to return to the professional who carried out your surgery.

If you believe your nerve damage has been caused by your dentist’s negligence or substandard care, you may be entitled to make a dental negligence compensation claim. Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors can help you understand your rights to compensation for nerve damage failure.

How much dental implant compensation could I get?

The amount of compensation you could secure from making a dental implant claim is dependent on the specific circumstances of the claim. Factors taken into consideration when calculating dental implant compensation include:

• The level of pain and suffering you have experienced.
• The cost of the losses you have incurred due to this negligence, such as taking time off work.
• Any future losses that you may incur, such as further treatment to rectify the issue.

As a rough guide, dental implant compensation can range from £5,000 all the way up to £150,000 in extreme cases. Once our solicitors have had an initial consultation with you, they will be able to give you a more accurate estimate of the compensation amount.

How much does it cost to make a dental implant claim?

The cost to make a dental implant claim will again depend on the circumstances of the claim. However, we work on a no win, no fee basis, so unless your claim is successful you will not incur a cost.
If your claim is successful then we charge a maximum fee of 30%, which includes a success fee and unrecovered costs.

How long do I have to make a dental implant claim?

You will have up to three years after your dental implant procedure to make a claim. The time limit starts from the date when you had the dental implants fitted or from when it is reasonable to assume that you should have been aware that there was an issue with them, which has caused your suffering.

We would advise you to get in touch with our dental negligence team at Cosmetic Surgery Solicitors as soon as you feel that you have suffered due to dental implants gone wrong.