When guinea pigs have toothache

Guinea pigs usually indicate pain by a change in feeding behavior and their cautery habits, the pain often being triggered by a pathological process in the oral cavity. The problem for the attending veterinarian, however, is that the small mouth of a guinea pig is only partially accessible and not easily visible. To study more closely and for treatment, the animal must be anesthetized. Since guinea pigs unfortunately also have an increased risk of narcosis, it is often attempted to correct the teeth when they are awake or to treat superficial dental diseases in a short anesthetic. Very often, however, the cause of toothache lies in the reserve crown (corresponds to the tooth root) and is therefore not visible in the conventional examination of the oral cavity.

Common dental diseases

Incisors and molars are about equally affected by diseases and malformations. But many changes in the area of ​​the incisors have their root cause in the molar area. For example, obliquely worn out incisors often indicate a painful process of the molars. The opening of the first molars of the lower jaw over the tongue is easy to determine when examining the oral cavity. Guinea pigs affected by this can no longer swallow and starve to death without treatment on the full feeding bowl. Other changes in the buccal region that are evident in the exploration of the oral cavity include asymmetric wear, abnormal skewing of the chewing surfaces, tooth tip formation, and dental fractures. In contrast, causal tooth changes, such as macrosontia, a root or a tooth fracture, can only rarely be detected by inspection of the oral cavity. Macrodontia is a tooth that is significantly enlarged in comparison to its physiological form (usually very similar to the tooth of the other side of the body), and represents a mechanical problem for tooth abrasion. The macrodontia is either acquired or already innate. Affected teeth become oversized and are severely inflamed and painful. While problems in the incisor area are already detected during the inspection of the oral cavity, the above-mentioned causative dental diseases can only be diagnosed with imaging techniques.

Clinical study proves necessity of computed tomography (CT)

In a clinical study at the dental clinic of the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna 66 guinea pigs were examined to what extent computer tomography not only contributes to the safe diagnosis of dental disease, but is unavoidable. The guinea pigs with pain were first subjected to a videoendoscopic examination in the waking state and then subjected to computed tomography. Unlike in the incisor area, where in a bony distension in connection with a tooth fracture, a macrodontia or a tooth loosening in connection with purulent discharge even with the inspection of the oral cavity, the suspected diagnosis "infection of the tooth root" can be made, this is in the molar region not possible - here computed tomography can provide clarity.

Advantages of computed tomography

Since the visible crown area accounts for less than a third of the entire tooth, 85 percent of the painful dental problems occur in the reserve crown area and thus under the gums and can only be detected with a CT examination. This superior examination technique is performed under general anesthesia and is less stressful for the animals compared to the X-ray examination because of the shorter examination time. The conversion into a three-dimensional reconstruction additionally offers an excellent orientation possibility for the operating specialist and also provides information about which animals would benefit from an operation and which not. The result of the clinical study can be summarized in that the sole survey of the oral cavity is not sufficient to diagnose in the guinea pig causally relevant tooth changes such as pathological processes under the gums and the molars, but a computed tomography examination is inevitable to a reliable diagnosis to ask and show the true extent of the disease. Important: The examination by computer tomography is quite affordable: The price for the computed tomography examination of the guinea pig head is currently 120 euros at the university hospital.