PITTSBURGH-
Fillings, and drillings, and root canals, oh my! Koda, one of two young polar bears at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, was recovering from a root canal Monday.
The procedure was performed Sunday by Dr. Tom Klein, a veterinary dentist at Ohio State University, and Dr. David Regine, who normally works on human teeth at his practice in the Pittsburgh suburb of Bridgeville.
“The bear was very comfortable and so were we,” Klein said, noting the 2-year-old bear was rendered unconscious with an anesthetic dart before the procedure. “We’re always concerned about that wearing off.”
Koda’s keepers noticed the problem last month, when the bear appeared to be lethargic. That’s when they found his lower right quadrant mandibular canine–the big, fang-like tooth on the lower right side of his jaw–was chipped.
Animals in the wild have uncanny healing powers, but the infection in the bear’s tooth could have spread to its jaw if left untreated, Klein said.
“He might have reached the point where the jaw would have been so infected, he loses it,” Regine said.
The dentists prevented that by drilling into the tooth and removing the infected tissue–the five-inch root–during the one hour, 45-minute procedure. A permanent filling was then put in the bear’s three-inch tooth.
The size of the bear’s tooth required the dentists to improvise, because dental tools used on humans weren’t large enough. That’s common when working on animals, Regine said.
“Some of the things I used were plumbing supplies,” Regine said. “I used a turkey skewer. You have to use your imagination.”
Koda and his brother, Nuka, arrived from the Denver Zoo in November. The young bears are the centerpiece of the Pittsburgh Zoo’s new polar bear exhibit, which helped the facility set a new attendance record last year.
The bears weigh about 600 pounds each, but will grow to 1,600 pounds in a few years.
Nuka could be seen pacing anxiously after his brother drugged with a dart and taken inside for surgery.
Zoo officials aren’t sure how the bear damaged the tooth, but Klein likened it to small children who fall and chip a tooth. Bears use their canine teeth to grasp object, and Koda’s keepers believe he may have broken the tooth playing with his brother.
Regine, who regularly volunteers at the zoo, will return later this week to check on Koda. Regine has worked on beavers, an alligator, tiger and lion in recent years. Zoo officials said this was their first polar bear root canal.
“I guess Koda’s just going to grin and bear it,” Regine said.
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