A woman from Germany suffered severe pain owing to an instrument tip that was stuck in her tissue. (Photo courtesy of 

IDAR-OBERSTEIN, Germany: A German dentist has had to stand trial after not removing an instrument tip broken during root-canal treatment and not informing the patient about the incident. The tip, which had become stuck in the tissue, was not removed, even though the woman continued to complain about serious pain over a long period of time.

As reported by German newspaper Rhein-Zeitung, the woman’s ordeal began in November 2009. After a filling had fallen out of an upper molar, the woman received a new resin composite filling. As she was still suffering from pain, the dentist initiated treatment of the three roots. During one of the sessions, an instrument tip broke off in a root canal and protruded about 2–3 mm from the root into the tissue. Even though an X-ray showed the foreign body, the dentist did not inform the patient and did not remove the tip.

For months, the patient complained about severe pain, and yet the dentist assured her that the pain would go away once a fibre-reinforced post had been placed. However, even after this treatment in June 2010, the woman’s pain was not relieved, and the patient had referred pain in the area of the right shoulder.
In December 2010, the patient had to go to the emergency room after her gums and cheek had become swollen. Doctors examined the woman and diagnosed her with a sinus infection. Antibiotic therapy was not successful. The correct diagnosis was not made until January 2011 when an oral and maxillofacial surgeon discovered the foreign body on an X-ray.

In court, the accused dentist insisted that he had acted appropriately. However, the court saw the matter differently and ordered the man to pay damages to the amount of €8,000, as well as €1,300 for the woman’s follow-up treatment and the amount of her legal costs.