Kent man left looking 'like the Elephant Man' after dentist lodged needle in his gums during tooth extraction

A father-of-six who is 'terrified of needles' has been left looking like the 'Elephant Man' after a dentist’s needle snapped off in the back of his mouth during a procedure, causing permanent nerve damage. The anaesthetic needle snapped off at the back of his mouth and caused permanent nerve damage — meaning he cannot feel the bottom right side of his face, causing his to dribble and bite into his cheek and lip without realising 'I didn’t go to the dentist from the age of 13 because I didn’t like needles, and when I finally did, that happened,' Mr Woollen said. Recalling the moment the dentist could not find the syringe Mr Woollen said: 'They couldn’t find the end of the syringe, the needle, and then they were reaching around in my mouth. When the surgeon at Queen Victoria Hospital in Crawley saw his X-ray he was in 'complete disbelief' that the needle was entirely lodged in his gum The father-of-six has since received a £17,000 in an out-of-court settlement — although the dentist involved did not admit liability 'They were laughing because they’d never seen anything like it.