Dental Health and Periodontal Disease

Consequences of advancing periodontitis include pain, difficulty eating, tooth loss, and the spread of infection to surrounding tissues and other organs. Dogs from our laboratory colony provide a naturally occurring model of dental disease for use in studies evaluating therapeutic interventions for the prevention, control and treatment of plaque and calculus accumulation, gingivitis and periodontal disease.

We provide a naturally occurring model of periodontal disease in our colony of aged Beagle dogs. Subjects can be selected based on intended target of the therapeutic intervention, for the prevention and control and treatment of plaque, gingivitis and stages of periodontal disease.

Physical examination of the subjects includes detailed examination of the mouth including assessment of each individual tooth with pocket depth measurements, and focus on gum appearance, and bleeding assessments. The gums are visually examined for recession and inflammation. Depending on the scope of the examination, assessments may be completed with the subject conscious; however, a thorough oral exam will require general anesthesia or sedation. A comprehensive examination would include visual exam, pocket depth, gingivitis index, gingival recession, furcation index, mobility index, staging of periodontal disease and scoring of the lesions identified. ^{1, 2} All examinations and assessments can also include photographic documentation of the teeth and gums.