Veterinary Dental Review

Front 1

Describe the anatomy of the oral cavity.

Back 1

The oral cavity (mouth) includes the hard palate (roof of the mouth), soft palate (soft roof of the mouth behind the hard palate), tongue, floor of the mouth (under the tongue). The median raphe divides the hard palate into left and right halves. Ridges called rugae radiate from the median raphe. The incisive papilla is round, raised tissue behind the central incisors, at the beginning of the raphe, under which the incisive foramen is located.

Front 2

Define dentition.

Back 2

The makeup of an animal's teeth (the number of teeth, kinds of teeth, and how the teeth are arranged)

Front 3

Name the four types of teeth that most small animals have, and describe them.

Back 3

Incisors, canines, premolars, molars

Hint 3

Incisor--flat-shape, front upper and lower teeth that meet to cut ("incise")
Canine--large, pointed teeth at the front upper and lower corners of the mouth ("fangs"), also called cuspids
Premolar--jagged-edged upper teeth on both sides of the upper & lower jaw, also called bicuspids
Molar--broader-surfaced teeth on both sides of the upper and lower jaw, toward the back of the mouth

Front 4

Define cusp, as in cuspid or bicuspid.

Back 4

Projecting point of a tooth. A canine is called a cuspid; a bicuspid has two projecting points.

Front 5

Define monophyodont, diphyodont, and polyphyodont; and give examples of each.

Back 5

Animal with one set of teeth throughout its lifetime, animal with two sets of teeth during its lifetime (baby and adult), and animal with multiple sets of teeth during its lifetime.

Hint 5

Examples:
Mono--rats, dolphins
Di--dogs, cats
Poly--crocodiles, sharks

Front 6

Define deciduous tooth

Back 6

Baby tooth, lost as part of a natural process and replaced by a corresponding permanent adult tooth

Front 7

At what age do deciduous teeth shed and permanent teeth erupt in dogs and cats?

Back 7

Dogs and cats should have lost their deciduous teeth by the age of 5-7 months.

Front 8

Define successional tooth

Back 8

Permanent adult tooth that replaces a deciduous (baby) tooth

Front 9

Define non-successional tooth

Back 9

Permanent adult tooth that does not replace a previous tooth (this tooth has no deciduous/baby counterpart)

Front 10

How many permanent teeth do dogs, cats, rabbits, and horses have?

Back 10

Dogs: 42
Cats: 30
Rabbits: 28
Horses: 36 to 44

Front 11

Define supernumerary tooth

Back 11

Extra tooth, not part of normally expected dentition

Front 12

Define mandible

Back 12

Lower jawbone

Front 13

Define maxilla

Back 13

Upper jawbone. "Premaxilla" contains incisors.

Front 14

Define alveolous.

Back 14

The bony socket in which a tooth sits

Front 15

Define root.

Back 15

The portion of a tooth below the gumline

Front 16

Define crown.

Back 16

The portion of a tooth that is visible above the gumline

Front 17

Define apex.

Back 17

The root tip of a tooth.

Front 18

What is the apical delta?

Back 18

The opening at the apex of a tooth root through which nerves and blood vessels go into the tooth

Front 19

Define cementum.

Back 19

Hard connective tissue surrounding a tooth's root

Front 20

Define enamel.

Back 20

Hard white outer layer on the tooth visible above the gumline ("crown")

Front 21

Define dentin.

Back 21

The main substance in a tooth, covered by cementum below the gumline and by enamel above the gumline

Front 22

Define pulp.

Back 22

Soft internal tissue of the tooth (contains blood vessels, nerve tissue, and dentin-producing cells), surrounded by dentin

Front 23

Define periodontium.

Back 23

All the supporting tissues of the teeth including the alveolar bone

Front 24

Define periodontal ligament.

Back 24

Connective tissue that holds the tooth (by its layer of cementum) to the alveolar bone

Front 25

Define gingiva.

Back 25

The soft, pink tissue surrounding the teeth commonly called the "gums"

Front 26

Define sulcus.

Back 26

The normal tiny space where the gingiva meets the tooth

Front 27

Define supragingival and subgingival.

Back 27

Above the gumline and below the gumline

Front 28

What are some common symptoms of dental disease?

Back 28

Foul breath
Visible plaque and tartar
Visible redness of gumline
Visible soft tissue trauma in mouth
Blood visible in mouth or saliva
Failure to eat well
Dropping food around the dish
Food in the drinking water
Discharge from nostril or eye
Facial swelling
Drooling
Rubbing at the muzzle

Front 29

Define gingivitis and periodontitis.

Back 29

Inflammation of the gingiva (gums) and inflammation of the periodontum (supporting tissues of the teeth).

Front 30

Define periodontal pocket.

Back 30

An abnormally large space between the gingiva and the tooth

Front 31

Define plaque.

Back 31

Soft biofilm on teeth, primarily containing aerobic, gram-positive bacteria. As plaque worsens, the environment becomes more favorable for gram-negative bacteria, which release toxins.

Front 32

Define tartar.

Back 32

Also referred to as calculus. Stone-like concretion on teeth that consists primarily of calcium salts.

Front 33

Define dental prophylaxis.

Back 33

Professional teeth cleaning process (scaling and polishing the teeth)

Front 34

Why is it important that an animal's teeth be cleaned only by a professional veterinary technician/vet under anesthesia, instead of hand-scaled by a groomer?

Back 34

1. Vet techs and vets are trained to identify problems not obvious to a lay person.
2. Most dental disease exists below the gumline, which cannot be assessed or treated without anesthesia.
3. Xrays are the only way to identify many dental problems.
4. Scaling teeth liberates bacteria that can be aspirated by the animal when the airway is not protected by an ET tube.
5. Scaling teeth causes scratches in the enamel that must be removed by polishing or they will collect more bacteria & plaque.
6. If extractions are needed, they can only be done by a professional under anesthesia and with appropriate pain control.

Front 35

Define these directional terms:
buccal
lingual
labial
distal
mesial
coronal
apical

Back 35

buccal--toward the cheek (tooth surfaces)
lingual--toward the tongue (tooth surfaces)
labial--toward the lips (canine and incisor tooth surfaces)
distal--away from the midline
mesial--toward the midline
coronal--toward the tip of the tooth
apical--toward the root of the tooth

Front 36

Define brachydont, hypsodont, and aradicular hypsodont dentition and name some animals with each type.

Back 36

brachydont: low-crowned teeth
hypsodont: especially high-crowned teeth, providing extra material to be worn by chewing
aradicular hypsodont: continuously growing ("erupting") high-crowned teeth

Hint 36

Examples:
brachydont:dogs, cats, pigs, humans
hypsodont: cows, deer, sheep
aradicular hypsodont: rabbits, horses, many rodents (such as beavers)

Front 37

What are some problems that can occur with aradicular hypsodont teeth? How can the problems be prevented?

Back 37

Since the teeth continually grow, if they are not effectively worn down, they can traumatize or grow into the gingiva opposite them. Over-long molars can prevent the mouth from closing and therefore chewing properly.
If either of these happen, it can also prevent the animal from eating and without treatment the animal may starve to death.
Solutions: in pets such as rabbits who have poor incisor occlusion, the incisors must be clipped off every few weeks.
In horses, teeth should be regularly checked by an equine dentist and if necessary, individual teeth or cusps should be ground down ("floated").

Front 38

Define wolf teeth.

Back 38

Wolf teeth are small, peg-like teeth that equines may have in the premolar 1 position (they may have anywhere between none and four). Much more common on maxilla than mandible. They have no deciduous precursor. If wolf teeth are not deciduous themselves, in riding horses they are usually extracted so they don't interfere with the bit.

Front 39

How many canine teeth does a horse have and what are they also known as?

Back 39

0-5.
Also known as tusks (permanent canines) or tushes (deciduous canines).

Front 40

What is Galvayne's Groove?

Back 40

A vertical groove in the upper corner incisor of horses that can be used to estimate the animal's age.
Appears at about age 10.
Halfway down the tooth about age 15.
All the way down by about age 20.
Then it begins to disappear.
By about age 25 it's half gone.
By about age 30 it's gone.

Front 41

How can an adult horse's teeth be used to estimate age?

Back 41

Galvayne's groove (see separate flashcard)
Cups (hollow area on the table of incisors that wears away over time at different rates on different teeth, usually gone by 11)
Pulp star (pulp cavity exposed from wear, appears about age 6 on lower incisors, lower intermediates about age 9, all incisors age 10-12.
Hook: appears on upper corner incisor about age 7, disappears at 8, reappears at 13, disappears again about 14.
Angle of incisors: becomes more acute with age.
Shape of incisors: usually round, then oval, then triangular.

Front 42

What does it mean to describe a horse as "full-mouthed" and "smooth-mouthed"?

Back 42

full-mouthed: all adult teeth have erupted (usually occurs by age 5)
smooth-mouthed: all the cups on incisors have worn away (usually occurs by age 11)

Front 44

What are "fighting teeth"?

Back 44

A set of three fangs (2 upper, 1 lower) found in llamas. Often extracted in male llamas to prevent serious injury to other males.

Front 45

What is the major difference in dentition between ruminants and other animals?

Back 45

Ruminants have no upper incisors; instead they have a "dental pad" against which the lower incisors work.

Front 46

What is the major difference between rodent dentition and most other animals?

Back 46

Only the front surface of their incisors is covered in enamel, the back consists of softer dentin. This causes the incisors to be continually sharpened as they chew. The incisors also continually erupt.

Front 47

What are the major differences in dentition between pigs and most other animals?

Back 47

Pigs are born with "needle" teeth that project laterally out of the mouth and are usually clipped off to avoid causing injuries to others.
Boars have tusks which are actually large, protruding canine teeth that grow continually.

Front 48

Define Feline odontoclastic resorptive lesion (FORL).

Back 48

Plaque-caused lesion that starts in the dentin of a tooth and due to an inappropriate immune response the tissue can't repair itself. Often looks similar to a small area of gingival hyperplasia. Very painful and the affected tooth must be extracted.

Front 49

Define feline stomatits, also called Feline gingivitis syndrome (FGS), or lymphocytic plasmacytic syndrome (LPGS).

Back 49

Inflammation of a cat's entire mouth, often characterized by painful, red areas, sometimes open sores and bleeding. Believed to be immune-mediated. Caudal stomatitis ("faucitis") can be life-threatening. Treatment may vary but extraction of multiple or all teeth with wide excision of inflamed tissue and removal of any root fragments provides the most guaranteed positive outcome.