Episode 3: Exposing the Risks of Non-Anesthesia Dental Cleaning

Dr. Ted Burghardt discusses the critical importance of dental health for pets, comparing non-anesthesia dental cleanings with those performed under anesthesia. He emphasizes the benefits of anesthesia for thorough cleaning and safety, while also addressing the risks associated with both methods. The conversation highlights the need for regular dental examinations and the role of pet owners in maintaining their pets' dental health.

Takeaways

• Dental health is crucial for pets' longevity.
• Awake dental cleanings are less effective and riskier.
• Anesthesia allows for a thorough dental examination.
• Communication with pet owners is essential during procedures.
• Regular dental check-ups can prevent serious health issues.
• Sedation during awake cleanings can lead to complications.
• Dental disease is often unnoticed until severe.
• Thorough cleaning under anesthesia addresses hidden problems.
• Pet owners should prioritize dental health in their care routine.
• Understanding the risks of both cleaning methods is important.

Transcript

Dr. Ted Burghardt (00:02.772)
Hi, thank you for listening to Ted the Vet and I'm Dr. Ted Burkhart. Today I want to talk about dental health and different ways of cleaning our pets' teeth, mainly investigating one, having the teeth cleaned with non -anesthetic or awake dental cleanings, and two, having the teeth cleaned under anesthesia. I'll let you know upfront that I am not a big fan of the idea of awake dental cleanings.

At my clinic, I only offer cleanings under anesthesia. I'll tell you why. Dental disease is becoming more recognized as an important part of our pet's health. For humans, most of us brush and floss and routinely go to the dentist for a deep tooth cleaning. The dentist can probe the teeth, probe the gums, look for pocketing, look for other issues, may take some x -rays as well.

And so these things are becoming more important for our pets because the dental health will help them live longer. In the exam room, I hear all the time clients will tell me they never realized how much tartar was on the teeth or they never knew there was a fractured tooth their pet has been dealing with, but had never shown any symptoms. So when the tartar builds up and it's time for a dental cleaning, I want to go over some of the differences between the awake dental cleaning

versus the dental cleaning under anesthesia. In a non -anesthesia or awake dental cleaning, the pet needs to be firmly restrained. As you can imagine, they will not likely be willing to get their teeth cleaned. Sedation is usually not a great idea because so much water is used with the ultrasonic scaler that we don't want them to be less than alert and able to cough or spit out water.

because if they don't do that, they could inhale some of the water and get an aspiration, pneumonia. When we do an actual anesthesia dental, we put a tube down the throat, which helps protect the airways and limits the chance for water to get down into the lungs. Since pets are not really willing to open their mouths and say, the awake dental cleaning technique really only allows for cleaning

Dr. Ted Burghardt (02:26.604)
the surfaces of the teeth that are visible, the inside of the teeth usually don't get cleaned during an awake dental cleaning. So it's impossible to clean every surface of every tooth. Also, if there are any abnormal growths or other infected teeth or loose teeth, they would not be able to be removed and treated in an awake pet. I had a really sad case where a dog came in for

limping badly on a back leg after an awake dental cleaning. It went into the cleaning totally normal. And when the owner brought it to me, it wasn't even using its leg at all. We took x -rays and found out that the dog had dislocated his hip from struggling while being restrained during the dental cleaning. The other option is doing the dental cleaning under anesthesia. This eliminates much of the stress that a

a pet might be feeling and restraint is not needed. The airways are protected because we put a tube down the throat that keeps water from being able to go into the lungs. Anesthesia can be a risk and we only want to put animals that are healthy and good candidates under anesthesia. The way we determine that is based on a good physical exam and oftentimes doing lab work before the anesthesia to

minimize any risks of things going wrong. The complication rate statistically for anesthesia in pets is about one in 10 ,000, which is a small fraction, and that's probably more based on good patient selection. Under anesthesia, the patient can have the entire surface of every tooth cleaned and scaled. We do a dental chart where we note any pocketing.

Fercations, mobile teeth, growths, infections, anything like that. Gingival recession. So it's very thorough and very detailed. Not only inspection, but then we can also address those issues while they're under anesthesia. At my clinic, we focus on good communication with the owner. We always want to let them know what we're seeing while the pet's under.

Dr. Ted Burghardt (04:52.6)
and make sure that we get approval before we do anything. So the take home message is that dental health is critically important for helping our pets enjoy long lives. I always recommend dental cleanings under anesthesia because I believe it's more thorough and ultimately safer and less stressful for the pet. So please take your pets in for a full exam, including a dental exam. We're happy to answer any questions at companion pet care. So let us know if you have questions.

and thank you for listening. Take care.