Dental disease in cats is very common with conditions such as periodontal disease, gingivitis and stomatitis, and resorptive lesions being seen in practice.

Bacterial plaque is the cause of periodontal disease. If the plaque persists for a prolonged period, it can become calcified to form calculus. Periodontal disease is treated by scale and polish, meticulous subgingival scaling, selective extraction, prevention of recurrence, and dietary modification.

Periodontal disease, viral infections, systemic disease, and immunosuppression can cause inflammation of the gingiva and oral mucosa leading to gingivitis and stomatitis.

Over 30% of cats are affected by odontoclastic resorptive lesions which can be categorized into Type 1 and Type 2 tooth resorption (also combined; Type3). This condition is caused by non-carious destruction of hard dental tissue by odontoclastic cells. Treatment depends on type and stage of lesion – dental cleaning, extraction, root removal, coronal amputation.

To find out more on this topic, watch out for The Webinar Vet’s latest webinar on Feline dental disease by Matthew Oxford BVM&S GPCert(SAS) MRCVS here.

For further information on Feline dental disease check out this related content in the Dentistry category available on Vetlexicon Felis:

·         Dental scaling

·         Gingivitis and stomatitis

·         Odontoclastic tooth resorption (resorptive lesions) (FREE e-book)

·         Periodontal disease

·         Teeth: calculus