A PATIENT will require surgery to correct dental work left incomplete by an orthodontist who is believed to have fled the country.

The Appleton woman, who wishes to remain anonymous, paid Dr Beatrice Luciola more than £3,500 to have braces fitted to her top and bottom sets of teeth last year.

But the 36-year-old says she received less than half of the treatment she paid for upfront at Dr Luciola's Beyond Dental Care practice in Knutsford.

Now, the orthodontist has been suspended by the General Dental Council for an interim period of 18 months following a host of complaints from patients.

Speaking to the Warrington Guardian, the patient said: "I'd spent years looking for the right orthodontist and I felt very trusting of her.

"I had the top brace put on in May last year and everything was going well, then in November I had the bottom brace put on.

"But between leaving the practice and getting home most of it had fallen off, and I had to spend most of the night with a cheese wire hanging out of my lip.

"The next day, I rushed back to have the whole thing re-done and then that was the last I saw of her.

"I spent the whole of Christmas and New Year constantly trying to get hold of somebody and ended up having to buy wire cutters and cut the wire.

"A lot of the brackets had fallen off and had left a wire sticking into my cheek - I was in so much pain."

A hearing in London earlier this month was told that Dr Luciola took payment from a number of patients but did not complete treatments.

Other alleged poor orthodontic treatment left patients in pain and discomfort, and led to them paying more money to have the dental work corrected.

Kenyan media outlets have reported that Dr Luciola has returned to the country of her birth as her dad is ill.

Her suspension will be reviewed in six months' time pending a GDC investigation.

Meanwhile, the Warrington patient has been forced to pay another orthodontist to have her brace removed after Dr Luciola failed to fit retaining wires, clean her braces and complete check-ups.

She added: "I've probably not even received half of the treatment I paid for, but the financial side actually pales into insignificant because she's basically ruined my teeth.

"When you trust somebody and you believe in them it's hard to imagine them ever doing something like this - I've still not processed it.

"I've got to now have jaw surgery, which will involve them breaking my jaw and me taking six weeks off work.

"There are no personal circumstances that could warrant this sort of behaviour.

"I'm not an angry or bitter person, but this has made me like that because I'm thinking every day about her sitting there with all our money showing no remorse."