Small Animal Dental, Oral and Maxillofacial Disease (eBook)

In an area of growing interest to veterinarians, the authors have produced a rapid reference to the practical clinical aspects of small animal dentistry. The text is arranged to reflect the clinician’s thinking and approach to problems: background information, clinical relevance, key points, differential diagnoses, diagnostic tests, and management. Some 400 top-quality illustrations—colour photos, imaging and diagrams— provide a critically important complement to the text. The colour handbook - here with revised text and references - offers real-life insights into the progression of oral disease and has been welcomed as a working resource by veterinary practitioners and students, and as a valuable review by more advanced veterinary dentists.In an area of growing interest to veterinarians, the authors have produced a rapid reference to the practical clinical aspects of small animal dentistry. The text is arranged to reflect the clinician’s thinking and approach to problems: background information, clinical relevance, key points, differential diagnoses, diagnostic tests, and management. Some 400 top-quality illustrations—colour photos, imaging and diagrams— provide a critically important complement to the text. The colour handbook - here with revised text and references - offers real-life insights into the progression of oral disease and has been welcomed as a working resource by veterinary practitioners and students, and as a valuable review by more advanced veterinary dentists.

Contents
1 Anatomy and Physiology
2 Oral Examination
3 Veterinary Dental Radiology
4 Pathology in the Pediatric Patient
5 Pathologies of the Dental Hard Tissue
6 Problems with the Gingiva
7 Pathologies of the Oral Mucosa
8 Problems with Muscles, Bones and Joints
9 Malignant Oral Neoplasia
10 Pathologies of the Salivary System
Appendices
References
Index

• Covers all aspects of dental diseases including the teeth, gums and problems associated with systemic disease • Also includes anatomy and physiology and oral examination techniques
• Contains superb colour illustrations
• A comprehensive reference encouraging structured and thorough clinical technique

FOREWORD

Veterinary dentistry has exploded as a discipline within veterinary medicine over the past 20+ years, primarily due to the tireless efforts of those clinicians in the 1970s and early 1980s who took an often overlooked area of the patient, and turned it into a focus of major significance. Thanks to these pioneers in veterinary dentistry, many of us found our calling within veterinary medicine and provide a valuable service to animals throughout the world. In the early days of veterinary dentistry, those who had a special interest in dentistry would gather together and discuss conditions and treatments they had found to be particularly helpful or successful. Out of these meetings rose the organization of the American Veterinary Dental Society and the Veterinary Dental Forum. The Veterinary Dental Forum has grown to an annual meeting of nearly 1000 participants, a far cry from the early days of getting together around a cold beverage to talk about your most challenging/rewarding cases! Also blossoming out of the efforts of these pioneers has come the Journal of Veterinary Dentistry, a quarterly publication that is currently recognized internationally as the journal of record for veterinary dentistry. All these efforts were to help educate veterinarians about veterinary dentistry and to elevate the practice of veterinary medicine in general. Though many aspects of veterinary dentistry are continuously evolving, one constant is the clinical practicality of veterinary dentistry. This is reflected in the organization and thought process throughout this book. Dr. Niemiec does an excellent job presenting many dental conditions from a very practical standpoint. Beginning with the initial oral examination, through the diagnostic procedures, such as dental radiography, Dr. Niemiec provides pragmatic tips along the way. Reading this text is similar to the way practitioners think through diagnostic challenges within their own practices. From the early chapters that focus on the normal oral/dental anatomy through the oral examination and diagnostics for all areas of the mouth, this text is a valuable reference for both the general practitioner and the seasoned veterinary dentist. Those of us, like Dr. Niemiec, who have walked in the footsteps of those pioneers of the early days of veterinary dentistry, can only hope to carry on the tradition of educating others in our quest to relieve unnecessary patient suffering. This book is an excellent tribute to those practitioners. With gratitude and thanks, Michael Peak, DVM, DAVDC Immediate Past-President, American Veterinary Dental College

PREFACE

This book is designed to be a quick reference for practitioners to identify the common oral pathologies in the dog and cat. All pathologies are demonstrated by typical photographic and, in some cases, radiographic examples. Along with the graphic examples is a concise but complete and current description of the pathology. The description includes etiology, pathogenesis, clinical features, differential diagnoses, diagnostic tests, and treatment/management. Each topic is then summarized in easy-to-read key points. This format will make identification and initial therapy of oral diseases much more efficient. The first three chapters set a foundation for assessing and diagnosing oral pathology. Chapter one is a review of oral anatomy and physiology. In the style of the book, this is supported with numerous full color images. Chapter two presents a stepwise guide on how to perform a proper oral examination. These techniques will allow practitioners to find the subtle pathologies listed within the book. Finally, dental radiology is presented. The first part of chapter three discusses proper techniques for obtaining quality dental radiographs, and the latter part discusses proper diagnosis of dental radiographs with high-quality digital images. Following this introduction, the book is presented by anatomic areas, to ease identification of unknown pathology. These areas include problems with the: teeth; gingiva; oral mucosa; bones, muscles, and joints; and salivary glands. Individual chapters have been created for pediatric oral/dental problems and malignant oral neoplasia. These unique topics are presented separately from the anatomical chapters to decrease time spent scanning the other chapters. Using this efficient format, if a patient under about 9 months is presented, the practitioner should only have to go beyond the pediatric chapter on rare occasions. Furthermore, if presented with a novel pathology, the practitioner may not know the name of the disease process, thereby making an index much less useful. By directly targeting the chapter which deals with that area of the mouth (for example the lesion is on the tooth), the practitioner can quickly scan just a few pathologies until he/she finds a picture that looks like the lesion in question. Then, in just a few minutes, the reader can learn all about the disease process, including what tests should be run to confirm the diagnosis as well as how best to manage it. Even experienced practitioners will benefit from the cutting edge information in this book. In addition, the succinct and practical style of this volume lends itself to be a client-friendly education tool. The veterinarian can use this peer-reviewed book to back up their management recommendations. This is critically important in veterinary dentistry, as most pathologies do not have obvious clinical signs that owners recognize (fractured teeth for example). The prudent practitioner will encourage clients to read the brief description of their pet’s particular pathology, thus improving client compliance with treatment recommendations. Since dental disease is present in almost all veterinary patients, I would consider having a copy in each exam room. This will aid all dental related discussions. This book makes numerous treatment recommendations, but it is not a technical manual. For those practitioners interested in improving their technical skills, I recommend Veterinary Dental Techniques, 3rd edn, by Holmstrom SE, Frost P, and Eisner ER (eds), Saunders, 2004. However, these techniques (including dental radiology) are best learned through hands-on training at wetlabs. For a list of my wetlabs in San Diego, visit www.sdvdtc.com. Brook A. Niemiec, DVM, DAVDC, FAVD...a very good canine and feline dentistry and oral surgery resource... In general the photographs and images of radiographs are of good quality...

The illustrations were excellent, detailed, and informational... the text provides an excellent visual resource and has the opportunity to improve and add photographs in future editions... allows the reader to quickly learn a large amount of information on a particular topic in just a few pages; the arrangement is relatively unique for a veterinary dental textbook and provides the reader with a concise, informative, and clinically relevant synopsis of the condition discussed. The handbook is easy to read and the reader can quickly learn about particular pathologies in the oral cavity. It is a textbook that should be included on reading lists for veterinary students, technicians, and in the library of general practitioners. The US list price of the book is a good value and would be an important resource for any small animal hospital library. It is a quality color and photographic resource for the practicing veterinarian to help identify pathology found in the oral cavity. It offers a quick resource with condensed information for a practitioner challenged with a busy practice schedule.A fully illustrated rapid reference to the practical clinical aspects of small animal dentistry, now in paperback with revised text and references, which offers real-life insights into the progression of oral disease.

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In an area of growing interest to veterinarians, the authors have produced a rapid reference to the practical clinical aspects of small animal dentistry. The text is arranged to reflect the clinician''s thinking and approach to problems: background information, clinical relevance, key points, differential diagnoses, diagnostic tests, and management.