Equine Dentistry Intro Flashcards
describe hypsodont teeth
- continual eruption and attrition
- erupt 2-4mm per year
- reserve crown is approx 100mm, expires at 25-30 years
-crowns so long are often intimately involved with the sinuses
describe dphypodont and lophodont
dihypodont: deciduous + permanent teeth
lophodont: teeth with ridges
-transverse ridges across chewing surface (increase surface area for chewing)
-buccal-lingual direction
describe the types of teeth and their puposes
incisors: grasp and cut food; sharp at the front of the mouth
canines: for fighting
premolars and molars: grinders; spaced very closely together to act as one individual grinding surface
wolf teeth (PM1): classified as premolar but are vestigial and have no function
describe the dental formula for horses
deciduous:
2 (DI 3/3, DPM 3/3) = 24 teeth
permanent:
2 (I 3/3, C* 1(0)/1(0), PM* 3(4)/3(4), M 3/3) = 36-44
C: canine teeth, sexually dimorphic, not seen in mares (or just very small/unerupted if in mare)
PM1: variable presence
describe the transition from deciduous to permanent teeth
- shedding of incisors
01: 2.5 years
02: 3.5 years
03: 4.5 years - shedding or premolar caps:
06: 2.5 years
07: 3 years
08: 4 years - eruption of molars (no deciduous counterparts)
09: 1 year
10: 2 years
11: 3.5 years
“important slide”
describe skull anatomy
- maxilla: extended, with frontal bone
- mandible: extended, always narrower than maxilla! (anisognathia)
-can cause occlusion problems - interdental space:
-between canines (male) or incisors (female) and premolars
-usually devoid of teeth so we put a bit here but wolf teeth can erupt here = problems - TMJ
describe nerves and vasculature of the facial soft tissues
- facial nerve (CN VII): facial expression and chewing (motor)
- trigeminal nerve: sensation, block for procedures!
- facial artery
- facial vein
- parotid dut
- masticatory musculature
describe the paranasal sinuses
6 paired:
- frontal
- dorsal conchal
- caudal maxillary
- sphenopalatine
- rostral maxillary
- ventral conchal
intimate relationship between tooth roots and sinuses!
describe dental anatomy: periodontium
- gingiva:
- cementum: outside of tooth in horse (instead of enamel) so doesn’t attract calculus = don’t scale
- alveolar bone: if unstable or diseased, nothing for the periodontal ligament to adhere to to keep tooth in place
- periodontal ligament: must loosen and fatigue to extract tooth
describe dental anatomy: endodontium
- pulp
- enamel
- cementum
- dentin: primary and secondary
- infundibulum: blind pouch of enamel filled with cementum; in maxillary teeth only
what are the 3 types of calcified tissue in the horse tooth?
- dentin: makes up bulk of the tooth
- cementum: exterior
- enamel:
describe the triadan numbering system for horses
always starts with central incisor and works its way out
all cheek teeth look the same so hard to figure out which missing!
first premolar/wolf tooth = 105
-not always present!!
-if not present, the 1st tooth you see when you look in the back of the mouth = 106
deciduous: start with 501 instead of 101
describe tooth surfaces/nomenclature
- buccal: toward cheek
-refers to premolars and molars - vestibule: space between cheek, lips, and teeth
- labial: toward lip
-refers to canines and incisors - lingual: toward the tongue
- palatal: toward the palate
-refers to maxillary teeth - mesial: towards the front of the mouth
-with incisors: towards center of mouth - distal: towards back of mouth
- occlusal: chewing surface
- coronal: toward crown
- apical: toward the root
describe number pulp horns
maxillary pulp horns: start at mesial buccal pulp horn (1), then work distal (2), then back to the front of the tooth other side and work back (3 and 4), 5 is kicked out into the palate
numbering mandibular PH: same as maxillary but 5 is in line with 3 and 4
describe the chewing cycle
rotatory and lateral
- open stroke
- closing stroke
- power stroke
some horses choose to chew with left or right side of their mouths
this gives the most surface area for grinding
describe normal occlusion
- normal relationship of dental arches
- level bite
- labial edges of incisor teeth occlude evenly
- cheek teeth positioned evenly
describe sharp enamel points
- along the outer/buccal edge of the maxillary cheek teeth and along the inner lingual edge of the mandibular cheek teeth
- develop as early as 2 years old
-younger: get sharper points faster than older - can cause pain, irritation, and ulceration of the cheek tissue and/or tongue and inflammation
describe dental malocclusions
malocclusion 1:
-normal relationship/occlusion of maxillary and mandibular dental arches
-malposition of one or more teeth: tooth version (leaning, shifted), overlong tooth (nothing to grind against = gets super long), supernumerary tooth (extra)
malocclusion 2: overbite
-abnormal rostral-caudal relationship between dental arches
-mandibular arch occludes caudal to its normal position with maxilla (incisor and cheek teeth)
malocclusion 3: underbite
-abnormal rostral-caudal relationship of dental arches
-mandibular arch occludes rostral to normal relationship with maxilla
-incisor underbite
-cheek tooth: hook (overlong area when the front of a tooth is not in occlusion with anything bc of underbite so keeps growing) or ramp
other malocclusions:
-shear mouth: problem with teeth angle, one side steeper; secondary to TMJ abnormalities or trauma, or congenital
–get super sharp, need floats every 6 months
-wave mouth: rollercoaster level; abnormal variation
–float the long teeth while maintain as much of chewing surface as possible
describe periodontal problems
- increased depth gingival sulcus
- periodontal pocket
- gingivitis, bleeding
- calculus accumulation
use radiography to assess bone loss!
majority comes from diastomata: abnormal spaces within the teeth that pack feed
describe endodontic problems
- tooth fracture: common
-if more acute: bleeding - caries/cavities: also common
-infundibular: don’t usually cause problems unless more of the surrounding tooth is also affected, in which case probs a sagittal fracture
-peripheral cemental: affect periphery of tooth; less common, might have to do with diet and environment - pulp horn defect/pulp horn necrosis
-looks pockmarked, packing feed
-seen often in horses with severe disease when young (hematogenous bacteria spread or improper tooth development)
describe soft tissue problems
- ulcerations and abrasions associated with sharp points
-once get rid of nidus, cheek and tongue will heal quickly - masses
