Dental Malpractice in Georgia: Nerve Damage and Serious Infections

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A claim that a dentist injured a patient, whether through a damaged nerve or an infection that spread, is governed by the same statutes as a claim against a physician. Georgia’s definition of medical malpractice names “dental” service, an expert affidavit must accompany the complaint, and a two-year limitation period runs from the injury, with a later start when a new injury appears after the original error.

How a Dental Procedure Can Injure a Nerve

Two nerves in the lower jaw can be injured in dental work, according to a StatPearls chapter on the National Library of Medicine’s NCBI Bookshelf. It describes the inferior alveolar nerve as supplying sensation to the chin, lower lip, lower teeth, and the surrounding gums and bone, and the lingual nerve as supplying sensation to the front of the tongue, with an injury in that area able to alter taste on the affected side. The chapter names extraction of a lower wisdom tooth as the leading surgical cause of these injuries and lists dental implant placement, local anesthetic nerve blocks, and root canal treatment among the others. An injured patient may have reduced or absent feeling, abnormal tingling, or painful sensations, which the chapter says can interfere with speaking, eating, and drinking. It describes many injuries, particularly those from anesthetic injections, as recovering on their own, and treats surgical repair as an option when sensation does not improve (Gloria Kwon and Marc H. Hohman, “Inferior Alveolar Nerve and Lingual Nerve Injury,” StatPearls). Whether a particular nerve injury reflects negligence is a question for expert testimony, and Georgia requires an expert affidavit with the complaint (OCGA 9-11-9.1(a)).

How a Dental Infection Can Spread

MedlinePlus describes a tooth abscess as a pocket of pus caused by a bacterial infection in or around a tooth, which can develop from decay or from a broken, chipped, or injured tooth that lets bacteria reach the pulp and spread to the bone supporting it. Treatment aims to cure the infection, save the tooth, and prevent complications, and can include antibiotics, a root canal, or extraction and drainage, with hospitalization in severe cases. The complications it lists include loss of the tooth, blood infection, spread of the infection to soft tissue or the jaw bone, and spread to other areas of the body, including brain abscess, inflammation of the heart, and pneumonia (MedlinePlus, “Tooth abscess,” updated Feb. 5, 2026).

Dental Care Is Within the Medical Malpractice Statute

The limitation statutes’ definition of an action for medical malpractice expressly lists dental service and care alongside medical and surgical care, when provided by a person licensed to provide it or by someone working under that person’s supervision and control, as well as care by a hospital, nursing home, clinic, or similar facility (OCGA 9-3-70). A professional malpractice complaint against a professional on the list in OCGA 9-11-9.1(g), which includes dentists, must be filed with an expert affidavit setting out at least one negligent act or omission and the factual basis for each claim (OCGA 9-11-9.1(a), (g)). If the affidavit is not filed and the defendant moves to dismiss with its first responsive pleading, the complaint cannot be renewed under OCGA 9-2-61 after the limitation period has expired, unless the court finds that the plaintiff had the affidavit within the required time and the failure was a mistake (OCGA 9-11-9.1(f)).

A Dental Misdiagnosis Case

In a dental misdiagnosis claim, the limitation period runs from the misdiagnosis unless the compensable injury comes later, in which case it runs from when symptoms first appear, and the dentist bears the burden of proving the defense. In Brown v. Coast Dental of Georgia, P.C., 275 Ga. App. 761 (2005), a patient missing 11 teeth consulted a general dentist, who proposed either orthodontic work first or extensive bridgework by the dentist, and the patient chose the bridgework. The plaintiff’s expert testified that at the initial consultation the dentist failed to take preliminary study models, failed to diagnose periodontitis visible on the patient’s radiographs, and failed to refer the patient to an orthodontist, and that the bridgework left the patient with constant, painful hot and cold sensitivity and an inability to bite properly on one side. The parties agreed to analyze the claim under the framework for medical misdiagnosis. The Court of Appeals described the general rule that the limitation period runs from the date of the misdiagnosis and the exception where the compensable injury occurs afterward, in which case the period runs from when symptoms of the injury first manifest themselves to the patient. It held that the defendants, who bore the burden on the affirmative defense of the statute of limitations, had not shown as a matter of law that the patient experienced symptoms more than two years before suit, and it reversed summary judgment for the dentist and the dental company. The earliest undisputed record of symptoms was a January 25, 2001 note of hot and cold sensitivity, and the suit was filed on January 24, 2003.

Brown predates the Supreme Court of Georgia’s decisions on misdiagnosis limitation. In Cleaveland v. Gannon, 284 Ga. 376 (2008), the Supreme Court disapproved language that could be read to start the period for a “new injury” when the patient “discovered” the injury or the negligence, and held that it runs from “the date the patient first experienced symptoms of his ‘new injury’ following a symptom-free period.”

The informed consent statute requires consent, and disclosure in general terms, for surgical procedures under general, spinal, or major regional anesthesia and for certain diagnostic procedures, covering the diagnosis, the nature and purpose of the procedure, material risks such as infection, loss of function of an organ, disfiguring scar, or death, the likelihood of success, practical alternatives, and the prognosis if the procedure is rejected (OCGA 31-9-6.1(a)). A failure to comply is not a separate cause of action, but it may support a malpractice action if the patient suffered an injury proximately caused by the procedure, information about that injury was not disclosed, and a reasonably prudent patient would have refused the procedure or chosen an alternative (OCGA 31-9-6.1(d)).

The Supreme Court has read the statute narrowly. In Albany Urology Clinic, P.C. v. Cleveland, 272 Ga. 296 (2000), it wrote that OCGA 31-9-6.1 “is in derogation of the common law rule against requiring physicians to disclose medical risks to their patients,” so “it must be strictly construed and cannot be extended beyond its plain and explicit terms.” In Blotner v. Doreika, 285 Ga. 481 (2009), which concerned a chiropractor, the Court held that “Georgia does not recognize a common law duty to inform patients of the material risks of a proposed treatment or procedure” and that “the doctrine of informed consent for health procedures and treatment is defined in Georgia exclusively by statutes and regulations.”

The Deadlines

An action for medical malpractice must be brought within two years after the date on which an injury or death arising from a negligent or wrongful act or omission occurred, and in no event more than five years after the negligent or wrongful act or omission (OCGA 9-3-71(a), (b)).

Frequently Asked Questions

Does the informed consent statute cover a procedure done with only local anesthesia?
The statute’s list covers surgical procedures under general, spinal, or major regional anesthesia, amniocentesis, and diagnostic procedures involving an intravenous or intraductal injection of contrast material (OCGA 31-9-6.1(a)). Blotner held that informed consent in Georgia is defined exclusively by statutes and regulations, so for a procedure outside the statute’s list the question is whether a regulation applies.

Does the malpractice definition cover a hygienist or dental assistant?
It can. The definition reaches care by someone working under the supervision and control of the licensed provider, which takes in a hygienist or assistant working under a dentist in that way (OCGA 9-3-70).

What if something was left in the patient’s mouth?
When a foreign object has been left in a patient’s body, the action must be brought within one year after the negligent or wrongful act or omission is discovered, and the statute excludes a chemical compound, fixation device, or prosthetic aid or device from the term “foreign object” (OCGA 9-3-72).

When does MedlinePlus say a tooth infection needs a dentist’s attention?
It advises contacting a dentist for a throbbing toothache that does not go away or a bubble or pimple on the gums, and it describes swelling of the jaw as very serious (MedlinePlus, “Tooth abscess”).

  • Gloria Kwon and Marc H. Hohman, “Inferior Alveolar Nerve and Lingual Nerve Injury,” StatPearls (NCBI Bookshelf)
  • MedlinePlus, “Tooth abscess” (updated Feb. 5, 2026)
  • OCGA 9-3-70; OCGA 9-3-71(a), (b); OCGA 9-3-72
  • OCGA 9-11-9.1(a), (f), (g)
  • Brown v. Coast Dental of Georgia, P.C., 275 Ga. App. 761 (2005)
  • Cleaveland v. Gannon, 284 Ga. 376 (2008)
  • OCGA 31-9-6.1(a), (d)
  • Albany Urology Clinic, P.C. v. Cleveland, 272 Ga. 296 (2000)
  • Blotner v. Doreika, 285 Ga. 481 (2009)

Disclaimer

This article provides general information about dental malpractice claims under Georgia law. It is not legal advice, is not medical advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Whether a claim is timely and whether a dentist met the standard of care depend on the records, expert evidence, and specific facts. A person injured by dental care should seek treatment and consult a licensed Georgia attorney promptly about the particular situation.

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