Periodontal disease is one of the most common health issues in veterinary medicine. Unfortunately, periodontal disease is usually not recognized until it is at an advanced stage. Early diagnosis is often difficult because there are often no outward signs of a problem, and the main culprit cannot be seen during a routine visual inspection.
What is this main culprit in dental disease? Plaque. Especially underneath the gums.
Plaque, an invisible bacterial slime (or biofilm), is laid down by bacteria on the surface of the tooth, above and below the gum line. It causes inflammation of the gums (gingivitis), creates deep gaps between the tooth and gum (periodontal pockets), and damages periodontal tissues beneath the gums (periodontitis), all of which eventually results in tooth loss, with a lot of unnecessary pain and discomfort along the way.
Prevention
Your efforts in trying to prevent gum disease will go a long way toward keeping your pet healthy, comfortable and alive for as long as possible.
Preventing periodontal disease is important for your pet’s overall health, as periodontal disease has been linked to liver and heart disease. Besides, periodontal disease is painful, even if your pet doesn’t seem to show signs of pain.
If a pet has periodontal disease, what signs of pain might they show? Pawing or rubbing at the mouth, drooling, decreased appetite, taking longer to finish meals, change in eating habits (carrying food away from the bowl and dropping it on the floor before eating it), mouth odor, bleeding from the mouth, reluctance to chew favorite chew toys, aggressive behavior or withdrawal from the family are all possibilities. By the time you notice any of these things, your pet’s disease is already advanced.
The best approach to periodontal disease prevention is regular professional veterinary dental cleanings and a good daily home dental care program.
Professional cleaning
A lot goes into a veterinary dental cleaning. It starts with your veterinarian obtaining an accurate history, performing a full physical exam including an awake oral exam and pre-anesthetic testing (blood work and possibly chest X-rays and electrocardiogram). Your veterinarian will then have a thorough discussion with you regarding preliminary findings and treatment plan.
Next, your pet will be placed under general anesthesia with careful, continuous monitoring throughout the procedure. An extensive visual exam is then performed. Grossly evident tartar is removed, crowns are examined, gingival pockets are probed and measured, dental X-rays are taken, and ultrasonic scaling of all tooth surfaces above and below the gum line is performed for plaque removal.
At this point, any necessary surgical procedures (like extraction of diseased teeth) are performed. Next, all remaining teeth are thoroughly polished, above and below the gum line. A fluoride treatment is used to strengthen tooth enamel. Post-procedure oral antibiotics may be prescribed.
Your pet will recover from anesthesia with continued monitoring, while your veterinarian finishes recording procedure notes and prepares comprehensive discharge instructions for you.
Bottom line
Advanced periodontal disease that results in tooth extraction is a shame because it was likely preventable. In addition, it probably caused a lot of unnecessary pain and discomfort along the way. With advanced periodontal disease, the teeth become loose and painful. It is much better for your pet to get those rotten teeth out of there. Even if a pet loses all of its teeth, it will still be able to eat with no problem.
Successful prevention of periodontal disease requires both home dental care by you and regular professional veterinary cleanings under general anesthesia.