Dental Disease Affecting Our Pets
February is National Pet Dental Health Month.
During this month Veterinary clinics and hospitals all over North America
emphasize the importance of dental health in our pets. Why is this
important?
Well, dental disease is the most common disease we
see in our pets. It is estimated that 85% of all dogs and cats over the age of 3
years have some form of dental disease. This may be tartar formation and
gingivitis all the way up to and including severe periodontal disease and the
need for extractions.
Why? Well, that is obvious. Our pets dont brush and floss. Unless we do that for them (or offer other possible preventative strategy) its only a matter of time. For some breeds and individuals severe disease can occur at a very early age. It all begins with the formation of plaque (food particles, saliva and bacteria form a Bio-Film) which then becomes mineralized into Tartar. Tartar progressively adheres and inflames the gums and leads to destruction of the tissues and bone holding the tooth in the socket (periodontal disease). Then its only a matter of time before that tooth is lost.
What can we do to help? Once tartar has formed, the only thing that will remove it is scaling (professionally with an ultrasonic scaler). In pets, this involves a general anesthetic. You might hear of so called "anesthetic-free dental cleaning". This is a cosmetic only procedure and has very little health value. To really get the mouth healthy ALL of the surfaces of the teeth need to be cleaned INCLUDING the surfaces under the gums. Trying to do this without anesthetic is a hopeless task and can actually lead to damage to the dental tissues and more pain for the pet. In addition, to really examine the mouth thoroughly, probing for pockets around the teeth is important and X-rays of the roots are done to establish if there is any disease below the gums.
Should we be afraid of anaesthetics? Today's anaesthetics are so much safer than previously and our ability to monitor the patient is so much better. Like any decision in life we must take into regard the risk versus the reward. The fact is that the risk of dental disease and related issues to dental disease (ex kidney disease, heart valve disease, etc) is much higher than any risk with anaesthesia (which nowadays is very low).
Quite frequently we find during a dental procedure that there are teeth that are remarkably diseased and we cannot save them. In those situations an extraction or extractions may become necessary. I can tell you from experience, that Veterinarians DO NOT like to do extractions. There is a reason why. Have you heard the old saying ..."its like pulling teeth"? It means that extracting teeth is very hard work. And it is. Therefore, when we make a recommendation to extract a tooth we do not take it lightly. However, often there is no alternative. We do not want our patient to go home with a rotten tooth or rotten teeth in his/her mouth. And, fortunately, our patients do amazingly well without teeth (especially diseased teeth).
Once the teeth are clean and disease free preventative products can be used. Look for VOHC (Veterinary Oral Health Council via http://www.vohc.org/accepted_products.htm) approved products and products advised by your Veterinarian. There are a lot of products out there that are pretty much useless and/or have not been put to any scientific testing. Brushing is by far the best thing you can do. However, not all owners can do this and not all patients will tolerate it. Certain water additives, chew strips, oral gels, and tartar prevention diets (such as Hill's T/d or Royal Canin Dental) may be helpful.
Let's not let our pets suffer in silence. It always thrills me when I hear an owner say that they had a dental procedure performed on their pet and they are "like a puppy" (or kitten) again.
Check out this link for a video of a thorough Dental Cleaning http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Q6OnCF2rqiU
Well, dental disease is the most common disease we
see in our pets. It is estimated that 85% of all dogs and cats over the age of 3
years have some form of dental disease. This may be tartar formation and
gingivitis all the way up to and including severe periodontal disease and the
need for extractions.Why? Well, that is obvious. Our pets dont brush and floss. Unless we do that for them (or offer other possible preventative strategy) its only a matter of time. For some breeds and individuals severe disease can occur at a very early age. It all begins with the formation of plaque (food particles, saliva and bacteria form a Bio-Film) which then becomes mineralized into Tartar. Tartar progressively adheres and inflames the gums and leads to destruction of the tissues and bone holding the tooth in the socket (periodontal disease). Then its only a matter of time before that tooth is lost.
What can we do to help? Once tartar has formed, the only thing that will remove it is scaling (professionally with an ultrasonic scaler). In pets, this involves a general anesthetic. You might hear of so called "anesthetic-free dental cleaning". This is a cosmetic only procedure and has very little health value. To really get the mouth healthy ALL of the surfaces of the teeth need to be cleaned INCLUDING the surfaces under the gums. Trying to do this without anesthetic is a hopeless task and can actually lead to damage to the dental tissues and more pain for the pet. In addition, to really examine the mouth thoroughly, probing for pockets around the teeth is important and X-rays of the roots are done to establish if there is any disease below the gums.
Should we be afraid of anaesthetics? Today's anaesthetics are so much safer than previously and our ability to monitor the patient is so much better. Like any decision in life we must take into regard the risk versus the reward. The fact is that the risk of dental disease and related issues to dental disease (ex kidney disease, heart valve disease, etc) is much higher than any risk with anaesthesia (which nowadays is very low).
Quite frequently we find during a dental procedure that there are teeth that are remarkably diseased and we cannot save them. In those situations an extraction or extractions may become necessary. I can tell you from experience, that Veterinarians DO NOT like to do extractions. There is a reason why. Have you heard the old saying ..."its like pulling teeth"? It means that extracting teeth is very hard work. And it is. Therefore, when we make a recommendation to extract a tooth we do not take it lightly. However, often there is no alternative. We do not want our patient to go home with a rotten tooth or rotten teeth in his/her mouth. And, fortunately, our patients do amazingly well without teeth (especially diseased teeth).
Once the teeth are clean and disease free preventative products can be used. Look for VOHC (Veterinary Oral Health Council via http://www.vohc.org/accepted_products.htm) approved products and products advised by your Veterinarian. There are a lot of products out there that are pretty much useless and/or have not been put to any scientific testing. Brushing is by far the best thing you can do. However, not all owners can do this and not all patients will tolerate it. Certain water additives, chew strips, oral gels, and tartar prevention diets (such as Hill's T/d or Royal Canin Dental) may be helpful.
Let's not let our pets suffer in silence. It always thrills me when I hear an owner say that they had a dental procedure performed on their pet and they are "like a puppy" (or kitten) again.
Check out this link for a video of a thorough Dental Cleaning http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=Q6OnCF2rqiU
No comments:
Post a Comment