Expert: Rafael Mosery,D.D.S. - 2/19/2009

Question
Brief History: On November 11th of 2007, I was scheduled for a dental
implant (tooth #12).  The same dentist removed the original tooth a month or
so before.  X-rays had been taken, molds made.  Days prior, I
found out I was pregnant and decided to postpone the surgery until after my
baby was born.

On February 10th, 2009 I went in for a prep appointment to get the process
moving again.  They took new molds, examined my mouth and scheduled the
implant surgery.  No new x-rays were taken.

Today, February 18th, 2009, I went in to have the implant placed.  Prior to
surgery, the assistant said "Oh.  Did we not take an x-ray last time you were
here?  Oh well, that's okay".  Unfortunately, after drilling the hole for the
implant, they determined that there was not enough bone to complete the
process and that I would require a bone graft.  They placed a temporary
synthetic graft and told me I'd need to come back in two weeks to undergo a
bone graft.

I'm left feeling like, had they followed proper protocol with an x-ray, they
may have noticed the bone issue and saved me from even having to undergo
today's attempted surgery.  Am I wrong in this assumption and what are my
rights as a patient?  Perhaps I'm way off here, but I feel that if they did put
me through an unnecessary procedure, they should, at the very least, make it
right by finishing the process for me at no cost.  Is this a reasonable request?

Again, I could be way off, and I'm not trying to get a "free ride", but I feel like
something is not right here.

Answer
After 6 weeks the extraction site bone scaffolding begins to shrink.An X ray taken in the dental office is 2D that is it doesn't show accurate depth.The Dr. was prudent in not continuing with the implant placement and placing the graft.This was an excellent call on his behalf.Either way you needed the graft to get a more favorable result.You should be responsible for the cost of the graft and the cost of the implant etc.I understand your concern but you should be relieved that the Dr was not trigger happy and placed an implant in a deficient site,he did the right thing.