Steps to a Dental Cleaning
1 Ever wonder what we are doing when your pets come in
for a dental? Here are the steps that are taken at West Ridge when we perform a
dental cleaning on your pet.
First the “pre-dental “portion where the level of your pet’s dental disease is determined by a veterinarian. This diagnosis is given on a grading scale of one through four. Dental grade 0: No sign of plaque or tartar. Grade 1 disease/mild gingivitis: Margin of attached gum is inflamed and swollen. Plaque is covering teeth. Grade 2 disease/moderate gingivitis: Entire gum is inflamed and swollen, mouth is painful and odor is noticed. Grade 3 dental disease/severe gingivitis: Cherry red and bleeding gums - destroyed by infection and tartar. Sore mouth and bad breath odor is evident. Grade 4 dental disease/severe gingivitis: Chronic infection is destroying the gum, tooth and bone. A bacterium is spreading through the body via the bloodstream and may damage the kidneys, liver and heart. During this initial appointment, we will also run a complete blood chemistry on your pet. We are checking to ensure that your pet’s kidney and liver functions are adequate for anesthesia, as these are the organs that process that drug.
Once
the dental grade has been given and the bloodwork comes back perfect; it is
time to admit on your pet on the day of their dental. Once we have taken your pet into our inpatient
area the Veterinarian performs their pre-anesthetic exam while a certified
veterinary technician checks your pet’s temperature, heart rate, and
respiratory rate. Our ultimate goal is to keep your pet as safe as possible
while they are with us, as well as ensuring that no last minute infections or
problems have cropped up.
Then when it is time
for the procedure to begin, an IV catheter is placed, allowing IV fluids to be
running during the procedure to help control blood pressure and to allow
emergency access to life saving drugs if needed. Then all of our patient are
placed under general anesthesia and are intubated to protect the air. All
patients are set up with heart monitoring, blood pressure monitoring,
oxygenation monitoring, and CO2 monitoring. They are also manually monitored
throughout the procedure by a trained technician, with a DVM always standing by
for support.
All of our veterinary technicians follow strict guidelines
during the dental procedure; these steps are as follows:
1. A visual evaluation of plaque and/or tarter as
well as gingivitis is performed. This is grading the degree of plaque or tarter
on each tooth in your pet’s mouth. It is also an evaluation of the amount of
gingivitis of the gums around each tooth. At this time we also determine if any
teeth that should be visible above the gum line are missing, fractured, or have
any physical changes.
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| Ultrasonic Scaler |
2. Next is
ultrasonic scaling. We use this tool as the vibration and water break up, or pulverize,
calculus on the surface of each tooth without scraping them thus preventing
cracks in the enamel of the tooth, which causes more dental infections later in
life. The ultrasonic scaler is used on all surfaces of the teeth and below the
gum line as well; effectively cleaning the teeth.
3. After your pet’s teeth are cleaned, we check
for sulcus depth; or pockets, holes, or possible separating of the gums from
the tooth. We use a very small 1mm instrument and check both the front and the backs
of all present teeth. All measurement are recorded.
4. Then it’s time to polish! The
polishing head removes any remaining plaque and smooth’s the tooth’s surface. A
product called prophy paste is used which is similar to the toothpaste used by
dentists. Once all the teeth are clean, we rinse out the mouth removing excess
prophy paste and any debris from the teeth.
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| Polishing of the Teeth |
5. Dental radiographs are an
essential part of any dental procedure and are one huge item missing from
anesthesia free cleanings. This allows us to view what cannot be seen of the
teeth because it is under the gums. Like
people, most of our pet’s teeth actually reside beneath the gum line. With radiographs we can evaluate if teeth are
truly missing or broken off, the degree of tooth damage due to fractures or
feline oral resportive lesions (FORL), or any other abnormalities. These will
also show is if a tooth is abscessed or if there is bone loss in the jaw which
is an effect of dental disease. When
extracting teeth we also use dental radiographs to determine that all pieces of
the root have been completely removed. If these pieces remain in the gum or
bone they can cause further abscesses.
6. Once all cleaning and dental radiographs are completed,
the veterinarian will make their final assessment of the teeth. They will
evaluate the radiographs and physically check any problem areas. If further
dental treatment is needed such as extractions, bonded sealants, or clindoral
application, you will be contacted
for approval and to answer any questions you might have.
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| Full Mouth Digital Radiographs |
Once the first side is completed, your pet will be turned to
the other side and steps 1-6 will be performed again. Once all treatments are completed your pet
will be woken up from anesthesia in the arms of one of our loving veterinary technicians.
They will be consistently monitored during this time as well to ensure that
their transition is smooth and easy.
Getting your pets teeth evaluated, cleaned, and treated is
essential to your pet’s life time health and longevity.
Additional
reading on steps to a dental procedure:
4.
Veterinary Dentistry for the Technician and Office Staff. Written by: Steven E. Holmstrom
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