A 22-year-old Oregon man who wore braces for 11 years has dropped a $185,000 lawsuit against his orthodontist, according to a story in the Oregonian.
The lawsuit, filed last August in Multnomah County Circuit Court, claimed that Brad Chvatal, DDS, should never have allowed the plaintiff, Devin Bost, to wear the braces for that long and that he had developed severe tooth decay as a result.
Another dentist originally installed the braces in 1997, when Bost was 7 years old. Dr. Chvatal began seeing Bost as a patient in 2002, when he first became a license orthodontist. Bost claimed the braces were to blame for his subsequent dental problems -- so severe he needs to have several teeth extracted -- but others say his oral hygiene was lacking and that he often missed appointments with Dr. Chvatal over the years, according to the story.
Bost sought $150,000 for pain and sufferance, plus an additional $35,000 to cover his medical expenses.
The case was scheduled for trial in October, but Dr. Chvatal's attorney said Bost dropped the suit because it was "frivolous," according to the Oregonian. The attorney also claimed that many of the allegations in the lawsuit were "factually inaccurate."
