Today's Veterinary Practice

JAN-FEB 2016

Today's Veterinary Practice provides comprehensive information to keep every small animal practitioner up to date on companion animal medicine and surgery as well as practice building and management.

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tvpjournal.com | January/February 2016 | Today's VeTerinary PracTice PracTical denTisTry Peer reviewed 87 Figure 4. Indications for periodontal fap therapy and treatment of a deep periodontal pocket on a maxillary canine. Note that dental radiographs are necessary for any treatment and, if they reveal a signifcant issue either periodontally or endodontically, periodontal surgery is likely not a good option: ( A) intraoral dental picture of a left mandibular frst molar (309) in a dog with a 12-mm periodontal pocket. Periodontal fap surgery is necessary for complete cleaning of the root surface; otherwise, extraction is indicated. Note that the teeth are clean and the gingiva appears normal. This demonstrates the importance of anesthetized examinations regardless of outward appearance. (B) intraoral dental picture of a right mandibular frst molar (409) in a dog with Stage 2 furcation exposure. Periodontal fap surgery is necessary for complete cleaning of the root surface and furcational area. i n addition, this is an excellent candidate for guided tissue regeneration, especially since it is a strategic tooth; alternatively, the tooth could be extracted. ( C) intraoral dental picture of a right maxillary fourth premolar (108) in a dog with Stage 3 (through and through) furcation exposure. Periodontal fap surgery is necessary for complete cleaning of the root surface and furcational area. However, extraction is generally the treatment of choice. demonstrates that periodontal faps are necessary for thorough cleaning of deep pockets. These procedures can be learned by general practitioners and require minimal investment in equipment. if such procedures are not an option, these teeth should be extracted. Home Care • Toothbrushing is still considered the gold standard for dental home care. acceptable standards for toothbrushing are at least every other day for nonactive periodontal disease to daily brushing for advanced periodontal disease. if clients are educated early about the benefits of brushing, compliance will increase. • Topical antiseptics, such as chlorhexidine and zinc ascorbate, are antimicrobial agents that have been shown to decrease plaque and gingivitis and can be used as adjunct therapy. 21-25 • A dental diet—Prescription diet t/d canine and Feline (hillsvet.com)—has shown true effectiveness in the treatment of gingivitis. While a claim for gingivitis is no longer allowed, evidence suggests that this and other specifically designed dental diets decrease plaque and calculus accumulation. 26-28 • rawhide chews and other chew treats are also effective at decreasing plaque and calculus. 29,30 However, many products are not supported by published peer-reviewed studies. For a list of approved products, please visit the Veterinary oral Health council's (VoHc) website, vohc.org. it has long been thought that traditional dry dog food is good for oral health, and one study appeared to support these claims. 31 However, an additional study showed that dry food was not A B C

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