Background: Visage Surgical Institute in Medina, Ohio (Google Maps). Inset: Matthew Miller (Andras Crematory and Funeral Home Alternatives).
A man from Ohio went in for a standard dental procedure to remove three teeth. Unfortunately, while his family waited outside, he suffered cardiac arrest during the surgery and subsequently passed away.
Brandy Miller, the widow of 48-year-old Matthew Miller, has initiated two lawsuits in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. She alleges that Dr. Faisal Quereshy and his team were negligent in administering general anesthesia to her husband. Additionally, she filed a lawsuit against Case Western Reserve University, citing that Dr. Quereshy is affiliated with the institution and one of the dental assistants involved was a research fellow there.
On August 4, 2023, Matthew Miller had an appointment to have three teeth pulled at Visage Surgical Institute in Medina, a suburb of southwest Cleveland. According to the lawsuit filed against Dr. Quereshy, Matthew arrived for his procedure, was given anesthesia, and subsequently “desaturated and stopped breathing independently.”
Despite emergency interventions at the facility, Matthew Miller was taken by ambulance to a hospital. He remained on life support for four days before passing away on August 8, 2023. His death was attributed to “acute hypoxic respiratory failure/probably procedural sedation.”
Over a year after the tragic incident, Brandy Miller pursued legal action against Dr. Quereshy and several personnel at Visage Surgical Institute, pointing out the dental assistant as being “not licensed to practice dentistry,” as per the lawsuit against Case Western Reserve University.
In response to the lawsuit, Case Western Reserve University’s legal representatives refuted all claims put forward by Brandy Miller, asserting that since Matthew Miller was not under their direct care, the university bore no responsibility for his death.
Local CBS affiliate WOIO obtained a hearing notice sent to Quereshy by the Ohio State Dental Board in connection with the Millers’ case that reportedly noted that Matthew Miller was morbidly obese, which did not make him a good candidate for general anesthesia. In the document, the Board reportedly stated that by putting Matthew Miller under general anesthesia, the patient was at risk to stop breathing during the procedure.
According to the lawsuits, that was exactly what happened. The board further noted that Matthew Miller should have undergone a physical examination by a physician before going under general anesthesia. According to the board, no such examination took place.
In a statement to Law&Crime, Michael Pasternak, an attorney representing Brandy Miller, said, “The Miller family and their friends have and will forever feel the daily pain of Matt’s death, a death that was 100% preventable and should not have happened. The charges brought by the State of Ohio Dental Board against Faisal Quereshy, MD, DDS, as well as what has been uncovered, has made that clear.”
“On Oct. 22, 2025, the State of Ohio Dental Board will begin their public hearings to hear the serious charges brought against Faisal Quereshy, MD, DDS,” Pasternak continued. “That upcoming hearing is the Dental Board’s opportunity to publicly address all that went wrong in Matt’s care.”
“This lawsuit will give a Jury the chance to address Matt’s unnecessary and painful death,” Pasternak added. The Miller family also “pray that something positive for other patients comes out of this tragedy, that steps will be taken to ensure that simple tooth extractions are safe for all patients.”
Law&Crime reached out to an attorney for Quereshy but did not receive an immediate response.
