Regional Veterinary Surgery

OVERLAPPING MOLARS AND OTHER ABNORMALITIES

Overlapping Molars (Shears mouth)

• In this condition, the outer border of the tables of the upper cheek teeth and the inner borders of the lower cheek teeth become so prominent that they overlap like the blades of the shears.
• Sometimes the borders may be so sharp as to injure the opposite gum.
• Treatment consists of periodic rasping of the sharp edges.

Irregularities of individual teeth due to lack of wear

• In this condition, part of the table surface of a particular tooth may project due to lack of wear. This is commonly called as a dental hook.
• Dental hooks may cause injury to cheek, tongue or the opposite gum. Dental hooks are commonly seen on the first upper cheek tooth and the last lower molar in herbivores.
• Dental hooks can be removed by using tooth shears or may be rasped.

Wave-formed mouth

• In this condition, the plane of the tables of the teeth is irregular, certain teeth being very short and their opposing counterpart in the opposite jaw too long. Usually the 4^th cheek teeth are affected in this manner.
• The teeth become short either due to some lack of durability of the crown or due to diseases of the alveoli.
• The difficulty in mastication is caused by the opposing long tooth causing injury to soft tissues.
• Treatment: To avoid difficulty in chewing, a soft diet may be prescribed. Remove the sharp points and edges of the long tooth by rasping or extract the tooth. If alveolar periostitis is present, it should be treated.

Step-formed Mouth

• This is also caused by over growth of individual molars.
• It may also result from loss of the opposing tooth.
• The irregularity in the table surface is much more than in wave-formed mouth. But the line of treatment is as in the case of wave formed mouth.

Premature wear of teeth

• In some individuals, the crown of the teeth becomes worn to the level of gum at a very young age. This causes pain while chewing and also causes alveolar periostitis.
• There is no treatment for this condition.
• The wearing of teeth may be retarded by feeding on soft diet.

Smooth mouth

• This is caused by an excessive wear of teeth. The table surfaces of teeth appear very smooth instead of having the normal rough grinding surfaces. This interferes with proper mastication and the animal loses condition.
• There is no treatment for this condition.
• Soft diets may be prescribed.