Equine Dentistry Overview

Equine Dentistry

• Karen Moore, BVSC Cert AVP (ED) FHEA CATE MRCVS, presented this lecture.
• The lecture covers equine dentistry, including teeth, anatomy, physiology, aging, and dental care.

Learning Objectives

• Understand the Triadan system for describing horse teeth.
• Understand principles for aging horses using their teeth.
• Connect the anatomy, physiology, and natural occlusion of equine teeth to the need for regular dental care.
• Grasp basic principles of equine dentistry.

Triadan System

• Anisognathic, meaning the mandible (lower jaw) is wider than the maxilla (upper jaw).
• Deciduous and adult teeth are depicted.
• Tooth numbers are shown.

Wolf Teeth and Canines

• Teeth are always numbered, even if not present.
• Images of examples of teeth are included with associated numbers.

Anatomy of a Tooth

• The components of a tooth, such as enamel, dentine, cementum, and pulp cavity, are described, along with secondary dentine.
• Infundibulae are also mentioned.

Maxillary Cheek Teeth

• 3 roots (2 buccal, 1 palatal).
• 2 infundibulae.
• Roots 6/7 are within the maxillary bone.
• Roots 8/9 are within the rostral maxillary sinus.
• Roots 10/11 are within the caudal maxillary sinus.

Mandibular Cheek Teeth

• 2 roots (rostral and caudal).
• No infundibulae.
• These teeth are narrower bucco-lingually compared to maxillary teeth.

Aging Horses

• Eruption times for deciduous and permanent teeth, including canines and wolf teeth, and molars, are shown in tables.
• Times are given by tooth type and stage of eruption, for example 1st week of life, 2.5 years.
• Relevant photos with clear instructions of what to look for and compare are provided.

Aging (Estimates!)

• Tooth morphology and appearance.
• Shape of incisors (wide vs tall) and angle between lower and upper incisors are examples provided.
• Note on enamel ring, pulp cavity and infundibulum.
• Changes in shape ovular to trianguar over time are mentioned.

Relating Anatomy, Physiology and Natural Occlusion to Routine Dental Care

• Understanding the anatomy, physiology, and natural occlusion of a horse's teeth.
• The relationship between these factors and the necessity for routine dental care.
• Relevant notes given.

Caps

• Deciduous teeth covering permanent teeth.
• May need to be removed in some cases.
• Removal too early can harm the growth of permanent teeth.

Embryology

• Stages of tooth development, including dental sac, primary and secondary dentine formation, are pictured.

Anatomy Related to Purpose

• Equids (horses) are grazers.
• Chewing teeth are angled for a single chewing mechanism.

The Chewing Cycle

• Description of the masticatory process in stages, with diagrams.
• Occlusion test, lateral excursion described.

Salivary Glands

• Three paired salivary glands (mandible, parotid, sublingual) are detailed.

Why Perform Dentals?

• Horses' diets affect their chewing patterns, from side-to-side for fiber to up-and-down for concentrates.
• Equids are prone to dental disease that can affect their survival in the wild, and this is often correlated with diets.
• Frequent dental care is needed due to the extended lifespan of domestic horses.
• Breed variation affecting dental health is noted, including horses versus donkeys.

Diet

• Excessive transverse ridges (ETRs) are usually normal, to increase surface area and need not be removed.
• Individual ETRs should be investigated to determine whether issues such as diastemas (spaces) exist.
• Sharp buccal/lingual points need reduction for prevention of soft tissue trauma, done through routine floating (rasping).
• Occlusion angle affects chewing motions, greater than 45 degrees might need care and reduction.

Age

• Equids have limited tooth crown length and teeth erupt approximately 2mm per year.
• Tooth roots lack enamel.
• Changes in dentition throughout the horse's lifespan necessitate changes to diet.

Evolution/Breeding

• Cheek tooth displacements can be medial or lateral.
• Overcrowding and varying degrees of displacement are more common in miniature breeds.
• Care with rasping, taking note of pulp horns, when treating displacements is discussed.

Basic Principles of Equine Dentistry

• First, do no harm.
• Get training; assess patient and history beforehand.
• The aim is for the horse to be more comfortable after the exam.

Routine Dental: Equipment

• Lists necessary equipment for equine dental examinations.

Routine Dental: Charting

• Recording of dental examinations is vital for patient history.
• Specific details like re-exam dates are crucial for monitoring and tracking oral health.

Performing a Dental: Raspings

• Comparison between manual and power tools for dental rasping procedures, including their features.

Resources