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A fair amount of research covering the mental and accessory mental foramina in humans has been conducted because of their importance in dentistry. Information about the frequency and location of accessory mental foramina is important to prevent damage to the mental nerves and blood vessels during surgery. Little research has been done on this subject in veterinary dentistry, but accessory mental foramina have been reported. The aims of this study were to identify the prevalence of a caudal mental foramen, to determine what the exact location is of the middle and caudal mental foramina and to determine whether intraoral radiography (IOR) is an efficient method of imaging the mental foramina, compared to computed tomography (CT). Materials and Methods: IOR of 53 dogs were assessed retrospectively. There were seven dogs that underwent both IOR and CT. An additional 140 dogs were included for retrospective assessment of CT examinations. For both CT and IOR the number of the foramina and the ease of identification (difficult, easy, excellent) was scored. Location was determined on CT and on parallel views of IOR. The scores for ease of identification of the CT images were com-pared with the scores of the IOR. Results: It was found that the presence of a rostral, middle and caudal mental foramen is the most common, namely in 65.5% for the left side (L) and 68.3% for the right side (R) of the cas-es on CT. Dogs have also been found with 2, 4, 5 and 6 foramina on one side. The middle mental foramen was mostly located in the area around 305-306 and 405-406. In 37.1 to 39.3% of the cases the foramen was located apical of both -05 and -06, in 22.1 to 27.2% it was locat-ed between -05 and -06. The caudal mental foramen was mostly located apical of the -07. Fo-ramina were excellent to identify most often on CT, in 82.9% (L) and 86.4% (R) of the cases, compared to 11.3% (L) and 18.9% (R) of the cases on IOR. Whereas foramina were difficult to identify on IOR in 24.5% (L) and 22.6

Objective: To compare stress indicators in cats with and without TR and/or FCGS before their onset. Design: Retrospective case-control study with a prospective control group. Animals: 31 cats diagnosed with FCGS, 38 cats diagnosed with TR and 24 cats with no dental problems Procedures: Through comparison of completed surveys between the dental diseased groups and the control group, differences in means were investigated. The control group were clinical and radiographic examined before they were allowed in the control group. Results: 18 significant values passed the Bonferroni correction. These values shows a tendency of discrepancy in social desirable behavior before onset of FCGS and TR, including higher estimated stress and pain levels. Conclusions: This study did not find convincing evidence that cats in the Netherlands with FCGS and/or TR were subjected in the past to more stress than cats without these dental conditions. Although there is a tendency of social desirable discrepancy before onset of TR and FCGS, which could be related to household-stress.

This survey assesses the dental problems of 118 dogs and 25 cats, brought to the Utrecht University Clinic for Companion Animals with non-dental problems. Apart from this, the degree of home care by owners is investigated as well as the role of the veterinarian as dental care advisor. Firstly relevant literature will be discussed after which the outcomes of the survey are elaborated upon. The results of this study are compared with results of two previous studies by Molenbroek (1996) and Rem and Smeets (1993). This study has come up with a number of remarkable findings. First, there is a high percentage of animals with gingivitis: in 77% of the dogs and 96% of the cats gingivitis could be determined. Second, dental problems (e.g. mobile elements and deep pockets) occur significantly more often in brachycephalic dogs. Third, more owners feed their dogs dry food in comparison with 1993. Fourth, dental treatment has never been carried out in more than half of the dogs (57,5%) and 36% of the cats. Lastly, 81% of the veterinary practices advises owners to brush their pets’ teeth. The results will be discussed at the end of this report.

Feline chronic gingivitis stomatitis (FCGS) is an inflammatory disease of the gingiva, oral mucosa and the pharynx in cats. There have been many speculations about the cause of this disease, including bacterial, viral and immunologic causes, but most likely the aetiology is multi factorial. Since the Feline Calicivirus (FCV) probably plays a causative role, this study investigated the prevalence of FCV in cats with FCGS. Three groups were formed, namely a group of 44 cats with FCGS, a control group of 49 cats and a group of 16 cats with other dental problems (i.e. periodontitis, ankylosis and/or replacement resorption). From each cat the presence of FCV and Feline Herpesvvirus-1 (FHV) was established by viral isolation from oropharyngeal swabs and information about living conditions and clinical history were obtained. The prevalence of FCV in the FCGS group and in the group of cats with other dental problems was 95.5% and 37.5% respectively, against 4.1% in the control group. The prevalence of FHV was however very low in all three groups (0-6.3%). In total 14 potential risk factors were analysed in an uni- and multivariable analysis. Positive statistical significant (P≤0.05) associations with, i.e. risk factors for FCGS, were the male sex (OR=4.1), purebreds (OR=25.2), and visitation at the pet shelter (OR=9.4). In addition, cats in the age category of <1 year were less likely to have FCGS (OR=0.031) compared to cats older than 12 years. All cats with a history of acute oral respiratory disease (AORD) had FCGS (100%). Purebreds are also predisposed for other dental problems. Risk factors for carrying FCV were; other cats in the household (OR=6.9), visitation at the pet shelter (OR=4.2) and a history of AORD (OR=126.1). In addition, cats in the age categories of 1-3 years (OR=14.4) and 3-6 years were more likely to shed FCV (OR=19.2) compared to cats over 12 years of age.