The family of a 4-year-old Oregon child, who experienced severe brain damage after being placed under general anesthesia for a dental procedure, has initiated a $22 million civil lawsuit against the dentist involved.

This medical negligence lawsuit, filed on July 30 in Multnomah County Circuit Court, claims that the child, referred to as M.L. in the document, suffered an overdose of sevoflurane, resulting in a temporary cessation of the heart’s function until successful resuscitation was achieved.

As a consequence, the child was left with such severe brain damage that relearning how to walk and talk became necessary, according to the lawsuit. Named as defendants are the dentist, Dr. Dustin M. Davis, the anesthesiologist, Lane D. Robinson, and Sunnyside Dentistry for Children, where they were employed.

Lawyers for the family said they have not received a response to the lawsuit.

According to the suit, M.L. visited Sunnyside Dentistry on July 24, 2024, for a routine dental procedure aimed at addressing some cavities. Anesthesia was administered under the guidance and care of Davis, the pediatric dentist and surgeon at the office, with assistance from Robinson.

The procedure was done despite reservations from one of the child’s parents, the lawsuit says.

Soon after the anesthesia was administered, the child experienced cardiac arrest while in the dental chair and was subsequently resuscitated through chest compressions and epinephrine injections, as claimed in the lawsuit. The child was then transported to a hospital.

“The defendants did not adequately monitor M.L.’s vital signs or respond to distress signals, which led to the cessation of the heart’s function,” the lawsuit asserts. “This resulted in M.L. suffering brain damage due to oxygen deprivation.”

The child had visited the office to have several cavities filled, according to the family’s attorney, Kirc Emerson. The child had come to the practice a few months prior, at 3 years old, and Davis had attempted to use nitrous oxide, also known as laughing gas, to perform the procedure. But the dentist recommended coming back at another time to use general anesthesia, the attorney said.

He said the family never received an explanation as to why Davis did not go through with the procedure using nitrous oxide.

M.L.’s “childhood has been materially altered because of this,” Emerson said, adding the child spent six weeks in the hospital and despite being back home, has not fully recovered.

The lawsuit states that the dental procedure began at 5:51 a.m. and by 6:12 a.m., M.L. no longer had a pulse.

Robinson, the anesthesiologist, declined to comment Monday when reached by phone.

“I would love to give you my side of the story, but I think it would be much more wise if I deferred to my attorney,” he said. “I’m sure you understand the delicacy of the position I’m in.”

Robinson would not provide his lawyer’s name, and Davis could not be reached for comment. It was not immediately clear whether he had retained an attorney. Sunny Dentistry for Children did not return phone calls seeking comment.

Davis has no record of malpractice violations, according to the Oregon Board of Dentistry. He has served as Sunnyside Dentistry’s practicing dentist since 2021, according to the company’s website.

He previously spent five years practicing pediatric dentistry in the Seattle area.

He earned a doctorate in dental surgery from Virginia Commonwealth University and completed his residency at the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he specialized in pediatrics. He also earned a master’s degree in oral sciences at the University of Illinois.

The lawsuit says M.L. can no longer sound out words, write, dress or use the bathroom without help.

The child has “regressed back to being an infant and has had to relearn all basic functions,” such as talking and walking, the lawsuit says.