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A Melbourne surgeon has been sued for negligence by a patient who claimed that he did not inform her of his “experimental” jaw device during surgery.
Dr George Dimitroulis is facing a lawsuit from a former patient who says he did not fully disclose the risks associated with her 2018 jaw surgery or reveal that the device, called OMX prosthesis, was experimental.
The patient has claimed that Dr Dimitroulis used a classification system he created to diagnose her condition as severe enough to require surgery. She claimed this system was not widely used by other surgeons and that less invasive treatments were available.
The unidentified patient has also alleged that the surgery resulted in chronic pain and inability to work, The Guardian reported.
Dr Dimitroulis, in his defence filed on 16 July, has denied the allegations and said that he followed accepted medical practices and discussed known risks with the patient.
“At all relevant times he acted in a manner that was widely accepted in Australia by a significant number of respected practitioners as competent professional practice,” his lawyer’s statement said.
An amended statement of claim filed on 21 June by law firm Slater & Gordon on behalf of the patient said Dr Dimitroulis wrote a research paper proposing a new classification system for diagnosing temporomandibular joint, or TMJ, disorders to determine which patients required surgery for it.
The paper was published in the International Journal of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery in 2013.
The claim alleged that the doctor used his classification system to diagnose the patient and suggested surgery as the only option available to her.
The patient has claimed that Dr Dimitroulis did not inform her that the surgery might not work or that it could leave her jaw condition worse.
The claims have been denied by the doctor’s defence team.
Dr Dimitroulis is described on his website as a “globally recognised surgeon and author” who “has been invited all over the world as a guest and keynote speaker by various national and international organisations spanning five continents to present topics ranging from TMJ surgery to surgical research”.
It notes that “he is the inventor of almost a dozen groundbreaking craniomaxillofacial medical devices including the TMJ Arthrojaw and Osseoframe”.
The Independent has reached out to Dr Dimitroulis for comment.
According to Medical News Today, “Temporomandibular joint disorder surgery can reduce pain and improve jaw functioning” but “doctors use this treatment as a last resort because there’s a lack of research on its safety and effectiveness”.
