Loch Carolina, Grando Liliane J, Kieser Jules A, Simões-Lopes Paulo C
Laboratório de Mamíferos Aquáticos, Departamento de Ecología e Zoologia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, 88040-970, Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil.
Dis Aquat Organ. 2011 May 9;94(3):225-34. doi: 10.3354/dao02339.
Pathological processes observed in the stomatognathic systems of mammalian species are a useful source of information about the habits, evolution and general health of such animals. Studies of pathological conditions on teeth are common in humans and other primates, but rare in wild animals in general and marine mammals in particular. For cetaceans, previous studies provided scanty records of dental anomalies in a few species. This is the first broad and systematic inventory of dental pathology in dolphins. Specimens stored at scientific collections from the southern coast of Brazil were visually inspected under a stereoscopic microscope using a dental explorer. Diagnosis of lesions and anomalies followed literature descriptions. Abnormalities such as caries-like lesions, mineralized calculus deposits, dental erosion, enamel anomalies (hypoplasia and exogenous pigmentation), root resorption, germination and other shape anomalies, were diagnosed in the delphinids Sotalia guianensis, Delphinus capensis, Stenella frontalis, Stenella coeruleoalba, Lagenodelphis hosei, Pseudorca crassidens, Orcinus orca, Steno bredanensis and Tursiops truncatus. Endogenous causes may be related to the occurrence of certain conditions, but the aetiology of caries-like lesions and calculus accumulation is still unknown for cetaceans. The diagnosis of alveolar anomalies and other bone lesions in specimens with dental pathology lead us to believe these lesions modify the integrity of the periodontal ligament and bony tissues, adding to the burden of morbidity of affected animals.
在哺乳动物口腔颌面部系统中观察到的病理过程是了解此类动物习性、进化和总体健康状况的有用信息来源。对牙齿病理状况的研究在人类和其他灵长类动物中很常见，但在一般野生动物尤其是海洋哺乳动物中却很少见。对于鲸类动物，先前的研究仅提供了少数物种牙齿异常的少量记录。这是首次对海豚牙齿病理学进行广泛而系统的清查。对存放在巴西南部海岸科学收藏机构的标本，使用牙科探针在立体显微镜下进行目视检查。根据文献描述对病变和异常进行诊断。在圭亚那小海豚、南非长吻海豚、弗氏斑纹海豚、条纹原海豚、霍氏海豚、伪虎鲸、虎鲸、小抹香鲸、糙齿海豚和宽吻海豚中诊断出龋齿样病变、矿化牙结石沉积、牙齿侵蚀、牙釉质异常（发育不全和外源性色素沉着）、牙根吸收、萌出异常和其他形态异常等病变。内源性原因可能与某些病症的发生有关，但鲸类动物龋齿样病变和牙结石积累的病因仍不明。对有牙齿病理的标本中牙槽异常和其他骨病变的诊断使我们相信，这些病变会改变牙周韧带和骨组织的完整性，增加患病动物的发病负担。
