A Perth dentist has defended his treatment of a woman who bled to death the day after having two teeth removed, during an inquest into her death.
Myo Moriaty, 68, suffered a haemorrhage and died after undergoing the routine procedure in December 2010.
She had been taking blood thinning medication and the inquest is examining whether her dentist, Dr Patrick Colgan, properly assessed her risk of bleeding.
The inquest heard Ms Moriarty was regularly tested by her doctor to see how quickly her blood clotted.
Dr Colgan told the inquest he did not discuss those test results with her doctor before the procedure, and instead relied upon what Ms Moriaty told him about her condition.
“I had no feeling of that need…. She was an intelligent and articulate patient,” he said.
“I felt we were within a safety or comfort area to proceed.
“It was reasonable to assume she was in the treatable range.”
Dr Colgan – who has been a dentist for almost 50 years – said he has since changed his practices in that area.
But he said he did not accept Counsel Assisting the Coroner Kate Ellson’s suggestion that he could not make an accurate judgement on whether to proceed without the precise details of Mrs Moriarty’s test results.
Expert says patient should have been tested for clotting
Earlier, oral medicine specialist Doctor Gareth Davies told the inquest Ms Moriaty should have been tested before the operation to determine how well her blood would clot.
Dr Davies said the procedure should have been postponed if her blood clotting ability was not at the right level.
The inquest previously heard Ms Moriaty had a history of valvular heart disease, stemming from when she had a mechanical valve inserted after suffering an infection when she underwent a dental procedure, in 1987.
Perth Coroner’s Court heard she was required to take anticoagulant medication every day and have her blood tested regularly.
The medication was included on a list Ms Moriaty provided to the dentist in 2009, although she did not undergo the procedure until the following year, the inquest was told.
The court heard she was given antibiotics before the treatment, which involved the removal of two teeth and the filling of three others.
The dentist also provided her with a prescription for further antibiotics after Ms Moriaty expressed concern about developing an infection.
Ms Moriaty returned to home was found her unconscious by her daughter the next day.
A post-mortem examination found the cause of death to be “acute gastrointestinal haemorrhage secondary to bilateral dental extraction, together with valvular heart disease”.