When I moved to Cochrane in 2008, I learned of Cochrane Dental Centre and met Dr David Sawka. Attended this dental clinic exclusively, OPAN X Rays taken a couple times at their recommendations, the first OPAN X Ray in 2010 and a second in 2015. In 2011 I started to have unexplainable mouth, throat, and sinus infections. I attended Urgent Care, and even the Doctors I saw could not establish why this was happening. I suffered from 2011 - 2012 with reoccurring infections, pain, lesions in my mouth, infections so serious that in some instances I would have to take two rounds of antibiotics. When I flew anywhere after the flight the same lesions would developed in my mouth. Then the Blood Pressure started to get out of control, so high that my family Doctor couldn't figure it out and would reject the dentist's request for sedation dentistry because of the extremely elevated BP 220/180. Then in 2021 another tooth went bad and Dr. Sawka referred me to a Maxo Facia Surgeon, Dr Higashi at Northlands in Calgary. Tooth extraction and preparation for an implant. During my consultation with Dr. Higashi, around 10 days before the surgery he took an OPAN X Ray and showed it to me as he explained I had a much more serious issue than the extraction and implant. Dr. Higashi explained what he saw on the OPAN. I was informed at that time that I had an impacted wisdom tooth. He also said that my Dentist shouldn't be a Dentist. In checking on my Dental records at Dr Sawka's office the OPAN X Rays showed the seriously impacted wisdom tooth that Dr Sawka never identified to me as to how impacted it was and the cause for concerns on my overall health it could cause. After leaving my May 2021 consultation with Dr. Higashi, I realized this was cause of all my medical issues and called him the next morning to request both surgeries be performed at the same time. It was agreed and a request was immediately sent to a Oral Maxillofacial Imaging Center. I attended immediately that same day and the image was completed with the interpretation by Dr. A Csillag. The roots of the wisdom tooth had pierced through my sinus cavity, and the crown of the wisdom tooth had worn away part of the root of the molar in front of this impacted wisdom tooth, known as resorption. This caused elongated calcification of my Stylo-hyoid ligaments. Since Dr Higashi performed the Surgery extracting the impacted wisdom tooth and repaired the sinus cavity, no more infections, mouth lesions, Blood Pressure returned to near normal and is being controlled by my GP. Dr. Sawka and his expert opinion dentist Dr Maclean both made a joke out of this situation by telling the Courts that the right decision was made internally at Cochrane Dental Center to "leave a lying lie". They must have meant "leave a lying dog die" because that's where I was headed with serious risk of stroke, heart attack and more pain and suffering all my life. I have never had any infections or lesions in my mouth since my wisdom tooth was surgically extracted and sinus was repaired by Dr. Higashi. Dr. Higashi saved my life. But he refused to be my expert, complete an expert opinion and testify in court on my behalf against Dr. Sawka, so Calgary Law Courts dismissed my case on a summary dismissal application that without an expert opinion I had no chance of success at trial. Dr. Sawka has been reported to The College of Dental Surgeon and a hearing will be soon, "then we will see about "leaving a lying dog lie". He should have told his insurer to pay the claim for $50K, because now the costs for the hearing will be out of his pocket and the outcome will be on public record. We tried to provide Dr. Sawka and his insurer an uncomplicated way to settle this off the record. He refused. So, he can have it his way. read more