Surgeon broke my cat's jaw during tooth extraction

Iggy went in today for what was supposed to be a routine cleaning. It turned out he had two resorptive lesions and they wanted permission to remove two teeth. We gave them the go ahead. Several hours later the surgeon calls back to say that while removing the first  tooth (lower canine) he fractured Iggy's jaw. Supposedly it's a minor fracture and he sutured the jaw. He wants us to see a specialist tomorrow to get a full understanding of what's going on. There is some concern that there might be fragments left.

I'm just at a loss. This was never something that was discussed as a possibility.  The vet wanted me to pick up Iggy this evening but I'm unsure as to whether I should have him hospitalized tonight or if bringing him home would be better? Should I be pressuring the vet to help pay for the specialist and follow up work. What else should I be asking? 

Unfortunately this is something that can happen with tooth extractions in kitties.  Their jaws are so small it doesn't take much to fracture it.  The main concern I would have would be his ability to eat.  I know sometimes with fractures a feeding tube is put in but if it isn't something really traumatic that may not be necessary.  Keeping an eye on his food intake would be the main thing I would keep an eye on.

Unfortunately this can happen, I work for a vet and we have a basset hound whom this recently happened too.  Usually it happens when there is a lot of tooth decay and the jaw is more fragile.  Did your cat have a lot of tooth decay?  You will probably want to feed soft foods for a while, although my friends dog ate dry food the night she had her jaw wired. 

I've heard of accidents like this happening, but it is COMPLETELY TERRIFYING going in for something routine and having everything go awry. Worst nightmare for those of us who consider kitties our babies!

I feel the vet should help with the payments for everything that came after the cleaning/extraction and I am not ashamed to ask and look into it. There are ways to be considerate and polite, as I am sure the vet didn't want this to either- horrible accidents do happen, but it will be a pretty hefty unplanned cost too! I hope somehow everything can be offset for you.

Good luck at the specialist, please keep us posted. I hope Iggy's jaw injury isn't serious and it turns out to be one that can kind of heal on its own instead of anything more complicated. Maybe also ask the specialist about future tooth extractions? Was the other vet even able to get the other resorptive tooth?  Since you are there, don't be afraid to ask everything you can think of, make a list so you don't forget- meds, prognosis, what can he eat, what can't he do, etc.

I haven't had a kitty with broken bones, I hope someone else here can offer more guidance on what to expect in healing and what kind of meds to look out for! 

Good luck, Iggy!

Thank you for the replies-- even though it's a terrible thing it's nice to know I'm not the only person to go through this. Iggy came home tonight and we've been managing his pain with buprenorphin. Any advice as to what to ask the specialist tomorrow or how to keep iggy happy and comfy is welcome as my brain is totally exhausted after all this.

I don't have his records in front of me but tooth decay was never explicitly mentioned by either our normal vet or the operating vet before or after the procedure. The main point of discussion was the lesions. So, unfortunately I don't know if that's the case but I can ask tomorrow. It could be a future problem because only one of two troubled teeth was removed.

We've since learned that the operating vet/hospital never actually got in contact with my at home visit vet that referred us to the hospital to get iggy's latest records before the surgery took place so it seems like the vet might have gone in not fully informed.

Hi;

Find out if it was a tech or the vet that did the extraction. Either way, they need to pay for every cost associated with the broken jaw that they caused.

Does this happen? Yes. Should it happen? No. People need to slow down and be patient when removing teethe. I would think that every vet out there would know about how cats can get fractures from canine teethe removal. They had to know what they were getting themselves into by the pre dental radiographs.

Good luck at the specialists. You can ask him about the health of the other teethe. Also ask him if anything is left in. Ask him about after care and what to do if your cat won't eat.

Once when I was working for a vet in a very affluent area: There was a newer vet working there with another tech and she was trying to get a carnasal tooth out of a Lhasa Apso, well, apparently she slipped and wound up poking the dogs eye from the inside. She immediately was ordered to take the dog to the eye specialist and the dog did make a recovery. The hospital paid for all of the costs including the original procedure. So basically the client didn't pay anything at all for anything done there or at the specialist. So....could be worse, but still, it shouldn't have happened.

Iggy's surgery went great! Thank you for the information ,reassurance and guidance! I made a point of asking about all these issues you all raised. The specialist felt that the original operating vet (it was a vet and not a vet tech) had removed all parts of the tooth in question and that the jaw fracture would not need additional work. He also felt that the problem might have stemmed from how much of the tooth's roots had been converted to bone by resorption. Pulling the tooth in the manner the vet did might not have been the best approach. The second problematic tooth was sheared off at the base and supposedly that should resolve an additional resorption problems. Iggy was given an appetite stimulant before he left and has been wildly into food since coming home and we've had try to force him to take it easy (easier said than done). Iggy is on a Fentanyl patch for five days and that should be managing his pain. He's groggy and had a bit of diarrhea this morning, but from what I was told that is most likely because of stress and not a cause for concern atm. We're all finally resting some after a rough few days.

Because the outcome of the surgery was even better than expected we ended up paying considerably less than was initially projected, but still about a $1,000 at the specialist. We have a discussion about what happened and costs lined up for this coming week with our vet hospital. I'm hoping they'll be willing to cover all or most of the expenses. Wish me luck!

That's great!! I hope the first vet can help absorb some of that 1k cost. That's a lot to spring on someone unexpected-- but I am glad nothing was worse!

It is NOT the veterinarian's fault, it happens!  Cat jaws are fragile, veterinarians do the absolute best they can with what's in front of them!  People should realize there are complications to every single medical procedure for every single type of species there is on this planet, deal with it.  The owner should be thankful for the veterinarian's concern to send the cat to a specialist and not ask for any financial reimbursement.

kitlover said:

 
It is NOT the veterinarian's fault, it happens!  Cat jaws are fragile, veterinarians do the absolute best they can with what's in front of them!  People should realize there are complications to every single medical procedure for every single type of species there is on this planet, deal with it.  The owner should be thankful for the veterinarian's concern to send the cat to a specialist and not ask for any financial reimbursement.

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Hello!!  

This thread is from 7/2014 so the chances are pretty high that you will not get a reply from the OP. I'm sure the cat is OK now. It's human nature to get upset when our pets are injured but yes, you're right. There are risks involved with any type of medical procedure whether it be on a human or an animal.