<i>Post mortem</i>survey of dental disorders in 349 donkeys from an aged population (2005–2006). Part 1: Prevalence of specific dental disorders

Toit, Nicole du; Gallagher, J; Burden, Faith; Dixon, Padraic

doi:10.2746/042516408x266060

Cited by 46 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 13 publications

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“…Sharp enamel points, however, were found to be significantly higher in donkeys aged 0-10 years old in one study [2] and cheek teeth fractures did not differ significantly among age groups in another study [1]. The current study has also demonstrated a significant linear effect of age on the prevalence of no/mild dental disease where increasing age was associated with a decreasing number of horses assigned to this category [14,18].…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 52%

“…Most published equine dental studies have been conducted on clinical cases in hospital settings [10][11][12] or using cadaver material [13][14][15][16], and these have furthered our understanding of the pathophysiology of various dental disorders. Field surveys have a key role in determining the prevalence of oro-dental disorders and providing evidence that will assist veterinary surgeons' and owners' understanding of the impact that dental disease has on equine health and welfare.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Prevalence of oro‐dental pathology in a working horse population in Egypt and its relation to equine health

Salem

Townsend

Refaai

et al. 2015

Equine Veterinary Journal

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SummaryReasons for performing study: Oro-dental disease can have a significant impact on equine welfare. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of oro-dental disease and to identify risk factors for oro-dental disorders and poor body condition scores (BCS) in a working horse population in Egypt. Study design: Cross-sectional survey. Methods: Oro-dental examination was performed on 450 working horses in 2 Egyptian provinces. Horse and management historical data were collected and horses were assigned to no/mild, moderate and severe dental disease categories based on findings on examination. Multivariable logistic regression and generalised additive models were used to identify risk factors for oral mucosal injuries and very poor/poor BCS, and to explore the relationship between age and different oro-dental disorders. Results: Oro-dental disease was common, with 45.3% and 8.4% of horses considered to have moderate and severe oro-dental disease, respectively. None of these horses had previously undergone any form of proper dental examination and treatment by trained personnel. Oral mucosal injuries (64.2%) and sharp enamel points (79.8%) were most common. Oral mucosal injuries were significantly associated with increasing age (odds ratio (OR) 1.1, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01-1.1, P = 0.03), focal dental overgrowths (OR 2.4, 95% CI 1.4-4.0, P = 0.002) and sharp enamel points (OR 6.3, 95% CI 3.5-11.0, P<0.001). Very poor and poor BCS were significantly associated with severe dental disease (OR 2.6, 95% CI 1.2-5.8, P = 0.02), horses aged 16-30 years (OR 3.5, 95% CI 1.7-7.0, P = 0.001), height (OR 0.9, 95% CI 0.9-0.97, P = 0.001) and packed cell volume (OR 0.9, 95% CI 0.85-0.95, P<0.001).Conclusions: There is a need for education of working horse-owners in Egypt about the importance of oro-dental disease and for greater availability of veterinarians with suitable training and equipment to perform dental prophylaxis and treatment. Even simple dental prophylaxis could have a significant impact on the health and welfare of this population of working horses.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 52%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence of oro‐dental pathology in a working horse population in Egypt and its relation to equine health

Salem

Townsend

Refaai

et al. 2015

Equine Veterinary Journal

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“…Dental abnormalities in horses As a result, 'dental disease' is a term used by the University of Edinburgh group to describe the equine dental condition. The term includes abnormalities such as those above, but excludes SEPs, but does include diastemata and missing teeth (Du Toit et al, 2008a and2009). Clearly, this is still a threat to animal health, with donkeys exhibiting dental disease significantly more likely to have a lower body condition score (Du Toit et al, 2009).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…It was suggested that these abnormalities were incidental and did not cause the death of the zebra, and therefore were not preventing them from eating. This is compared to the 93% occurrence of dental disease in domesticated donkeys in a UK study (Du Toit et al, 2008a) and 62% in a Mexican study (Du Toit et al, 2008b). Domestication, and specifically the use of bits and bridles, has also been suggested to increase the occurrence of oral ulcers in horses, potentially caused by sharp enamel points (SEPs) on cheek teeth (Tell et al, 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A comparison of the occurrence of common dental abnormalities in stabled and free-grazing horses

O’Neill

Keen

Dumbell

2010

Animal

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The purpose of this study was to gain evidence on the prevalence of dental abnormalities in stable-kept horses in comparison with free-living horses. It is expected that free-living horses that graze for as much as 16 h/day will have fewer dental abnormalities than stable-kept horses. In this study, the latter group was fed a diet that was based on a relatively high-energy, cereal-based feed. This was thought to be a representative of common practice in domesticated, stable-kept horses. Compound diets such as this have previously been shown to increase the frequency of chewing cycles and decrease mediolateral excursion. The occurrence of 10 named dental abnormalities present in the dentition of 60 Thoroughbred-type horses was recorded. Half of the population was at grass all year round in New South Wales, Australia. The remainder were stabled for 24 h/day in Gloucestershire, UK. All horses were between 5 and 15 years of age. The same, experienced, equine dental technician examined all horses using a full-mouth speculum and produced a routine dental chart.Stable-kept horses had a significantly higher total occurrence of abnormalities (P< 0.001) than free-living horses. The stable-kept group had a significantly higher prevalence of exaggerated transverse ridging across the occlusal surface of the cheek teeth, focal or ramped overgrowths of the cheek teeth and periodontal disease (P< 0.01 in all cases). All horses in both groups had some occurrence of sharp edges of the buccal and lingual edges of the cheek teeth. The results are in agreement with anecdotal evidence that a fibre-based, grazed diet results in fewer dental abnormalities. However, sharp edges may occur even with what is perceived as a ‘natural’ diet.

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“…That study also identified risk factors for developing impactions, which included old age and dental disease, as well as previous colic episodes (Cox et al, 2007). Du Toit et al (2008) further identified the presence of cheek teeth diastemata as a factor associated significantly with colic-related illness in the donkey.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Expression of PGP 9.5 by Enteric Neurons in Horses and Donkeys with and without Intestinal Disease

Hudson

Pearson

Mayhew

et al. 2014

Journal of Comparative Pathology

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SummaryIntestinal motility disorders are an important problem in horses and donkeys and this study was carried out in order to evaluate the enteric neurons in animals with and without intestinal disease. Surplus intestinal tissue samples were collected from 28 horses undergoing exploratory laparotomy for colic. In addition, surplus intestinal samples from 17 control horses were collected immediately following humane destruction for clinical conditions not relating to the intestinal tract. Similar samples were also collected during routine postmortem examinations from 12 aged donkeys; six animals were humanely destroyed for conditions related to the intestinal tract, while the remaining six were humanely destroyed for other reasons including dental and orthopaedic diseases. Tissue samples were fixed in formalin and immunohistochemical labelling was performed targeting the enteric neurons using a polyclonal antibody specific for the neuronal marker PGP 9.5. The distribution and density of neuronal networks were assessed qualitatively and semi-quantitatively. There was strong PGP 9.5 expression in both the horse and donkey samples and labelling was detected throughout the tissue sections. In both species, PGP 9.5-immunoreactive nerve fibres were detected in all layers of the intestinal tract, both in large and small intestinal samples.Networks of enteric neurons were present in the donkey with a similar distribution to that seen in the horse. There was no demonstrable difference in enteric neuronal density and distribution in the groups of animals with intestinal disease compared with those without, apart from two (out of 28) horses with intestinal disease that showed a marked reduction in PGP 9.5 immunoreactivity. Apart from these two animals, this total cohort analysis differs from some previously observed findings in horses with intestinal disease and may therefore reflect the different pathophysiological processes occurring in varying intestinal conditions resulting in colic both in the donkey and horse.

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Post mortemsurvey of dental disorders in 349 donkeys from an aged population (2005–2006). Part 1: Prevalence of specific dental disorders

Abstract: Aged donkeys have a high prevalence of significant dental disease, especially cheek teeth diastemata. These findings highlight the importance of routine dental examinations and prophylactic dental treatments to improve the dental health and welfare of donkeys.

Cited by 46 publications

References 13 publications

Prevalence of oro‐dental pathology in a working horse population in Egypt and its relation to equine health

Prevalence of oro‐dental pathology in a working horse population in Egypt and its relation to equine health

A comparison of the occurrence of common dental abnormalities in stabled and free-grazing horses

Expression of PGP 9.5 by Enteric Neurons in Horses and Donkeys with and without Intestinal Disease

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