A syndrome of dental abnormalities of sheep: II. The pathology and radiology

Abstract

Histological and radiographic examination of 23 ewe heads has revealed that mandibular osteopathy is a feature of the ovine dental abnormality syndrome described by Bruère et al.⁽³⁾ The bone changes consisted of excessive irregular remodelling of bone with osteoporosis. Developmental faults were also demon-strated. The most dramatic of these were dentigerous cysts involving unerupted permanent incisors, although malposition-ing of permanent incisors was also observed.

A histological feature of the excessive incisor wear was chronic pulpitis, perhaps a. result of the rate of wear exceeding the rate at which protective secondary dentine could be de-posited in the pulp cavity.

A number of nutritional deficiencies is known to cause gener-alised osteoporosis. Recognition of the osteopathy described here thus supports the clinical evidence of Bruère et al.⁽³⁾ that a nutritional disorder could be a major factor in the pathogenesis of this syndrome.