Clinicians must be able to identify nonvital teeth to recommend appropriate treatment, writes Kendall Taney, DVM, DAVDC, FAVD. He shares his top 5 methods for assessing tooth vitality:
- Visual inspection of the crown of the tooth
- Sensibility and vitality testing
- Dental radiography
- Direct examination of the pulp
- Histopathic evaluation
Source: Clinician’s Brief, July 2019. Link.
If a tooth is determined to be nonvital, treatment is indicated by either endodontic or exodontic methods. Teeth in patients younger than 2 years have a higher chance for recovery from trauma . . . Older patients may be more prone to permanent pulpal damage after trauma because of loss of reserve cell capacity.”
INSIGHTS: Dr. Taney uses two words we don’t hear every day. They underscore the real reasons for preventative dental care for pets:
- Nidus – a place in which bacteria have multiplied or may multiply; a focus of infection.
- Periapical – the area surrounding the end of the tooth root.