Pulpitis and pulp necrosis as a sequel to periodontal disease in dogs.

Summary: There is general agreement that pulpal disease can initiate and/or perpetuate periodontal disease; the oppo-site theory is controversial. Several investigators suggest that pulpitis could be a sequel to periodontal disease. If acces-sory canals are the main entrance for bacteria and their metabolites to the dental pulp, it is hypothesized that periodontaldisease associated pulpitis is less likely to occur in dogs compared to humans, because the typical canine root canalanatomy has very few lateral ramifications away from the delta at the root apex. The histopathology of dog teeth extracted because of moderate to advanced periodontal disease was studied to determinethe presence and range of pulpitis or necrosis. A total number of 22 affected teeth were examined and changes were com-pared with 5 control teeth obtained from dogs with no clinically detected periodontal disease. There was obvious pulpitisin 27.3 % of periodontally affected teeth with mild inflammation in additional 18.2 %. Pulp necrosis was observed in 40.9% of cases. Chronic apical periodontitis was confirmed in 44.4 % of teeth with pulp necrosis. The finding of obvious chronic and acute pulpitis in a significant proportion of cases, despite the low number of lateralcanals, was unexpected. Further study is required to determine pathogenesis of pulpitis. The possibility of pulpitis or pulpnecrosis in periodontaly involved teeth should be considered when planning periodontal treatment.