Ann Arbor Oral Surgeons

Why dont you have to sign a consent form for dental surgery, when you do for all/most other types of surgery?

Because the document will not protect the dentist from legal action.

While it is true in the US that we have “informed consent laws”, these laws protect a dentist only to the extent that what his actions do not constitute negligence.
To clarify, all dentists are required to tell their patients the risks of the procedures they perform. However, just because a specific injury is a “risk” of a particular procedure, doesn't mean that the dentist was not negligent.

Just because lingual nerve injury may be a risk in a wisdom tooth extraction procedure doesn't mean that if the damage is done that the procedure was done properly.

Public policy does not allow US dentists to hide behind these informed consent laws ia.

note:
Informed Consent”

Informed consent is required prior to oral surgery in the UK. I found this information today in an article entitled “Avoiding and Managing Complications in Minor Oral Surgery” by Stephen F. Worrall, MD (at website http://millennium3.org.uk)

Also, I just called a friend he said he does not even tell his pts. all the risks of dental surgery his words were ” I don't tell my pts. what could happen during surgery—it is assumed just as when you get on an airline flight the stewardesses do not tell the passengers their is a risk they will crash. We all all know this.” I told him he better reign in that frankness and come back down to earth! lol

I don't think I'm going to go get those wisdom teeth pulled now.

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