Kent Marc, Song Rachel B, Glass Eric N, de Lahunta Alexander
1 Department of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery, College of Veterinary Medicine, Athens, GA, USA.
2 Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, Red Bank Veterinary Hospital, Tinton Falls, NJ, USA.
J Vet Dent. 2019 Mar;36(1):8-16. doi: 10.1177/0898756419846607.
Trigeminal nerve pathology can lead to sensory and motor dysfunction to structures of the head that are easily recognized. The trigeminal nerve is a conduit for the distribution of postganglionic parasympathetic innervation to structures of the head. Parasympathetic innervation to the salivary glands is provided by preganglionic parasympathetic neurons of the facial and glossopharyngeal nerves. Postganglionic axons course with branches of the mandibular branch of the trigeminal nerve to reach the salivary glands. Denervation of the salivary glands impacts glandular function, leading to a reduction in the volume and composition of the saliva produced. Saliva plays an important role in oral health. Poor oral health has widespread systemic implications. This article describes a group of dogs with unilateral or bilateral dysfunction of the trigeminal nerve and/or its branches. In all dogs, an accumulation of thick, foamy saliva was observed accumulating in the dorsal aspect of the caudal oral cavity on the ipsilateral side to the affected nerve. In dogs with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), there was a reduction in size based on the largest cross-sectional area measurement and an increase in mean signal intensity of the salivary glands ipsilateral to the affected nerves compared to the glands on the normal side. The authors hypothesize that the abnormal saliva and MRI changes observed were consequent to parasympathetic denervation of the salivary glands. The recognition of this clinical observation is the first step in understanding the impact that denervation has on salivation and ultimately on overall oral and systemic health in dogs.
三叉神经病变可导致头部结构出现易于识别的感觉和运动功能障碍。三叉神经是节后副交感神经支配头部结构的分布通道。唾液腺的副交感神经支配由面神经和舌咽神经的节前副交感神经元提供。节后轴突与三叉神经下颌支的分支一起走行，到达唾液腺。唾液腺去神经支配会影响腺体功能，导致所产生唾液的量和成分减少。唾液在口腔健康中起着重要作用。口腔健康状况不佳会产生广泛的全身影响。本文描述了一组患有三叉神经及其分支单侧或双侧功能障碍的犬。在所有犬中，均观察到在患侧神经同侧的尾侧口腔背侧积聚有浓稠、泡沫状唾液。在接受磁共振成像（MRI）检查的犬中，与正常侧腺体相比，患侧神经同侧唾液腺基于最大横截面积测量的尺寸减小，平均信号强度增加。作者推测，观察到的异常唾液和MRI变化是唾液腺副交感神经去神经支配的结果。认识到这一临床观察结果是理解去神经支配对犬唾液分泌以及最终对整体口腔和全身健康影响的第一步。
