The study was approved by the WALTHAM® Centre for Pet Nutrition ethical review committee, owner consent was obtained and an owner survey was completed for all dogs included in the study. The study cohort comprised client owned pet dogs presented at a veterinary referral dental clinic (The Veterinary Dental Surgery, Surrey, UK). Only dogs under anaesthetic for routine dental treatment or treatment for non-periodontal complications e.g. fractured teeth or other non-infectious conditions were screened for inclusion in the study. No dogs were anaesthetised solely for the collection of plaque samples.
Dental assessments, scoring and subgingival plaque sampling were performed by a single veterinary dentist (L. Milella) to avoid variation in scoring. The periodontal health status of each dog was obtained following the Wiggs & Lobprise scoring system [6 ] and plaque samples taken from dogs regarded as having healthy teeth and gums, gingivitis or mild periodontitis ( <25% attachment loss). Dogs were excluded from the study if they had: 1) Significant veterinary oral care within the preceding 3 months; 2) Regular dental care at home i.e. dogs whose teeth are regularly brushed; 3) Systemic or oral antibiotic treatment at any time during the previous 3 months and 4) Evidence of any extra-oral bacterial infections in the past month. Veterinary observations suggest certain breeds may exhibit an atypical early onset/ aggressive form of periodontitis, though no data exists to confirm this these breeds (Greyhounds, Yorkshire Terriers, Maltese and Toy Poodles) were also excluded.
Sub-gingival plaque samples were collected using a sterile periodontal probe and placed in 350µl TE buffer (50 mM Tris pH 7.6, 1 mM EDTA pH 8.0 & 0.5% Tween 20) prior to storage at -20°C.
Healthy dogs were sampled subgingivally at eighteen sites, targeting the teeth believed to be most often affected by PD (upper 103-108 bilaterally and lower 404, 408 and 409 bilaterally), to support plaque volumes in the absence of periodontal pockets. Periodontally diseased dogs were sampled for subgingival plaque at up to twelve diseased sites (103, 104, 108, 404, 408, 409 bilaterally) during their normal periodontal treatment. In a minority of cases if a dog had sites of periodontal disease not on those teeth but more than 6 teeth were affected, the samples were taken from the affected teeth. Information on dog age, breed, size and sex was collated.
Dental assessments, scoring and subgingival plaque sampling were performed by a single veterinary dentist (L. Milella) to avoid variation in scoring. The periodontal health status of each dog was obtained following the Wiggs & Lobprise scoring system [6 ] and plaque samples taken from dogs regarded as having healthy teeth and gums, gingivitis or mild periodontitis ( <25% attachment loss). Dogs were excluded from the study if they had: 1) Significant veterinary oral care within the preceding 3 months; 2) Regular dental care at home i.e. dogs whose teeth are regularly brushed; 3) Systemic or oral antibiotic treatment at any time during the previous 3 months and 4) Evidence of any extra-oral bacterial infections in the past month. Veterinary observations suggest certain breeds may exhibit an atypical early onset/ aggressive form of periodontitis, though no data exists to confirm this these breeds (Greyhounds, Yorkshire Terriers, Maltese and Toy Poodles) were also excluded.
Sub-gingival plaque samples were collected using a sterile periodontal probe and placed in 350µl TE buffer (50 mM Tris pH 7.6, 1 mM EDTA pH 8.0 & 0.5% Tween 20) prior to storage at -20°C.
Healthy dogs were sampled subgingivally at eighteen sites, targeting the teeth believed to be most often affected by PD (upper 103-108 bilaterally and lower 404, 408 and 409 bilaterally), to support plaque volumes in the absence of periodontal pockets. Periodontally diseased dogs were sampled for subgingival plaque at up to twelve diseased sites (103, 104, 108, 404, 408, 409 bilaterally) during their normal periodontal treatment. In a minority of cases if a dog had sites of periodontal disease not on those teeth but more than 6 teeth were affected, the samples were taken from the affected teeth. Information on dog age, breed, size and sex was collated.
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