Equine Dentistry Flashcards
What are problems associated with dental disease?
Digestive problems Drooling Difficult Mastication Decreased Athletic Performance Behavioral Problems
What digestive problems are associated with dental disease?
Colic
Weight loss
Poor feed use
What are behavioral problems associated with dental disease?
Head tossing
Bar chewing
What is quidding?
Partially chewed feed spit out
What is the overall description of equine teeth?
Hypsodont
What lies beneath the gingival margin?
Large reserve crowns
The root structure allows for what?
Continual growth or eruption all or most of the animal’s lifetime
The cheek teeth in horses are what?
Premolars and molars
What is the function of horse incisors?
To shear off grass
What is the function of the cheek teeth?
They have wide, flat graveled surfaces that grind the feed before swallowing
How do horses chew?
Lateral excursion
What do milk teeth refer to?
Deciduous teeth
What are retained deciduous teeth, stuck on top of erupting permanent tooth called?
Caps
What is the chewing surface of the tooth called?
occlusive tables
What teeth are referred to as Wolf teeth
The first premolars
At what age are all permanent teeth erupted?
5 years
What is the angle between the lower and upper incisors known as?
Incisive arcade
What is the indentation in the occlusive table known as?
Cups
What is Galvayne’s groove?
The groove at the gum margin on the upper corner incisor
What is a smooth mouth?
Cups are absent
What is the dental formula of horses?
2x (3/3I, 1/1C, 3 or 4/3P, 3/3M)
What is the total number of teeth horses have?
Males have 40 or 42
Females have 36 to 40 teeth
How many teeth does a young horse have?uous teeth
24 deciduous teeth
What teeth do young horses have?
Milk teeth
12 incisors
12 molars
When does the 1st incisor erupts?
Birth to 1 week
When does the 2nd incisor erupt?
4-6 weeks
When do the 3rd incisors erupt?
6-9 months
When do the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd cheek teeth erupt?
birth to the first 2 weeks
When do the adult incisors erupt?
1st incisor: 2.5 years
2nd incisor: 3.5 years
3rd incisor: 4.5 years
When do the adult canines erupt?
4-5 years
When do the adult wolf teeth erupt?
6 to 9 months
When do the adult cheek erupt?
1st cheek teeth: 2.5 years 2nd cheek teeth: 3 years 3rd cheek teeth: 4 years 4th cheek teeth: 9-12 months 5th cheek teeth: 2 years 6th cheek teeth: 3.5-4 years
Do all horses have wolf teeth?
No
15% of mares and 25% of males
The wolf teeth are more commonly found on what?
THe maxilla
What teeth are often extracted due to bit contact?
Wolf teeth
What teeth are absent or rudimentary in mares?
Canine teeth
Males usually have how many permanent canine teeth?
4
What are canine teeth sometimes confused as
Wolf teeth
Where are the canines located?
The diastema between the incisors and the cheek teeth
In young horses, which teeth occupy much of the maxillary sinus?
4th premolar
1st, 2nd, 3rd molar
How much do the adult cheek erupt per year?
2-3mm
What is the Triadan numbering system for horses?
Incisors = 1,2,3 Canines = 4 Wolf teeth = 5 Premolars = 6,7,8 Molars = 9, 10, 11
How can incisors estimate age?
By wear patterns
What incisor pattern is common in 5 year olds?
Flattened
What is a common pattern for 7-year olds?
7-year hook in the corner maxillary incisor
What shape do the incisors change to when the horse is around 9 years old?
Oval
What shape do the incisors change to when the horse is between 9 and 15 years old?
Round
What shape do the incisors change to when the horse is between 16 and 20 years old?
Triangle
The angle of the incisors can indicate age. What angle do they take on when they are young?
Perpendicular
What is the angle of the incisors when the horses get older?
Parallel
What is a seven year hook?
There is an uneven wear of the upper corner incisor and a projection on its distal aspect
What is a dark depression on the cup in the occlusal surface of the incisor
Infundibulum
At what age does the cup disappear from the central, middle and corner incisors?
7 years
8 years
9 years
What is a transverse dark line that is in front of the enamel spot?
The Dental Star
At what age does the dental star arise in the central, middle, and corner incisors?
8 years
9 years
10 years
What is another dental feature useful for aging older horses?
Galvayne’s groove
Where is the Galvayne’s Groove located?
The lateral surface of the upper third incisor
How old is the horse when the Galvayne’s groove has totally disappeared?
30 years old
At what age does the Galvayne’s groove appear at the gum margin?
9 to 10 years
What is one of the most important instruments for a horse mouth examination?
Full mouth speculum (McAllen and McPherson)
What is the most common dental procedure performed in horses?
Floating
What does floating entail?
The removal of sharp enamel points
What is the angling and rounding the profile of both the upper and lower first cheek teeth in order to minimize bit contact with the teeth?
Bit seat
Bit seats reduce what?
The amount of cheek and tongue that gets pinched into the teeth by the bit
What is a diastema?
Impacted food inbetween the teeth
What does EOTRH stand for?
Equine Odontoclastic Tooth Resorption and Hypercementosis
What teeth does EOTRH most commonly affect?
The incisors
Canine teeth can be severely involved
What plays a role in the pathology and progression of EOTRH?
Chronic inflammation
How is EOTRH diagnoses?
Clinical exam
Intraoral xrays
How is EOTRH treated?
Extraction of the affected teeth
