Do not go to Atlanta Oral and Facial Surgery in Cartersville…read more
I was four months pregnant when I went in to this practice about my wisdom tooth pain, and was seen by Michael Hall. He reviewed my X-ray and said it had to be removed. When I asked about the risk of nerve damage, he laughed, completely dismissing my concern, saying verbatim, "I've done thousands of these surgeries and never had a patient with nerve damage. You won't be the first."
Well, the surgery left me with permanent nerve damage to my lip, chin, jaw, gums, and teeth. It has been over two years, and I live with this injury every moment of every day. In addition to what I already live with, I am constantly terrified that one day, the debilitating neuropathy I experienced for two months after the procedure will return. Two months of my pregnancy I spent hardly leaving the house due to the pain. Two months I will never get back.
Once it became clear I had sustained nerve damage, Dr. Hall's attitude shifted dramatically. The warmth and friendliness he initially showed disappeared. He became cold, dismissive, and visibly irritated whenever I voiced concern or asked questions. At one point, I decided to start bringing my mother with me to appointments because I was pregnant, overwhelmed, and no longer felt safe navigating appointments alone.
Two weeks after I'd spoken with both Dr. Hall and Dr. Etezadi about my nerve injury, my cousin (who had no knowledge of my situation) went in for a consultation about her own wisdom tooth. She, too, asked about the risk of nerve damage, and was told by Dr. Etezadi that they had never had a patient with nerve damage. He knew of my nerve damage just two weeks prior, so this was a blatant falsehood, and deeply, deeply disturbing. I cannot emphasize enough how disturbing this is.
At my two-week post-op appointment, no one even examined my mouth. Let me say that again: I was never asked to open my mouth at a post-surgical checkup for oral surgery. Most of the staff was rude and cold, and it was obvious they were aware of my situation. I felt humiliated, isolated, and like I had a scarlet letter. I remember crying in my car before and after appointments. I was four months pregnant, injured, and treated like a problem instead of a patient. In particular, a staff member named Morgan who was there for one of my meetings with Dr. Etezadi made me feel unbelievably uncomfortable and unwelcome. I still remember her coming to get me from the lobby and chuckling as she said, "Guess you didn't bring your mom with you today." I will never, ever forget this treatment as I have never felt it before from anyone anywhere, and I'm writing this review in hopes that no one else ever has to. I do want to note, however, that there was one staff member, a woman whose name I did not get but who was also pregnant at the time and was the staff member in my actual surgery, who was truly kind to me. I still remember her saying hi to me as she sat with a group of those other women. It was such a strange thing, feeling like it probably took courage for her to say hello. A strange thing, given that I was the victim and being treated more like a leper. To be frank, at least the ones in my appointments knew of my nerve damage, though I felt they all knew, and instead of treating me with sympathy and kindness, trying to at least right the wrong by being genuine, empathetic humans, they treated me more like a laughing stock.
A few more notes I want to make here. Firstly, on my actual day of surgery, Michael Hall gave me the numbing shots and walked out of the room. I assume to do other surgical procedures while waiting for the shots to take effect, but I don't know for sure. What I do know for sure is that he was gone for so long that when he returned, he had to give me even more shots because the ones he gave me prior had already begun to wear off. Let that sink in. A patient was given multiple rounds of numbing shots because the doctor took too long. Secondly, multiple dentists I've seen since have expressed concern about the quality of work done during my procedure. In particular, a ridge of bone left that I had to live with for months while it smoothed itself out.
Lastly, and this is important... Michael Hall is now practicing elsewhere. I won't speculate on that, but what I will say is that I have already had a person reach out who has ALSO suffered permanent nerve damage at the hands of Dr. Hall at his new place of business. And wouldn't you know it, they were told the same thing as I was... that they've never had a patient with nerve damage before. It certainly makes one wonder how many cases like mine, and like theirs, exist.
I would not wish this on anyone. Everyone involved at Atlanta Oral and Facial Surgery in Cartersville should feel shame.
This was a traumatic, life-altering experience -- and this message doesn't even scratch the surface of what I went through.
Please, protect yourself. Go elsewhere.
