Development of experimental gingivitis in the juvenile and adult beagle dog

Abstract. In a previous paper a lower tendency to develop gingivitis was reported among preschool children compared to adults. The aim of the present study was to clarify if the same age-dependent difference exists in dogs.
Six beagle dogs from the same litter were used. two periods of discontinued oral hygiene were studied, one period when the dogs were 3 months old and the other at 12 months. Prior to and between the experimental periods the animals were subjected to meticulous toothcleaning. During the experimental periods the Gingival and Plaque Index scores as well as the amounts of gingival exudate and crevicular leukocytes were determined on days 0, 4, 7, 14, 21 and 28.
During the juvenile period the development of dental plaque was lower compared with the adult period. The frequency of gingival units with high Gingival Index scores was lower at every registration interval during the juvenile period. The amounts of gingival exudate and crevicular leukocytes increased to high values during the adult stage but only small increments were found in the juvenile stage. An intraindividual comparison of the increase in the amount of gingival exudate from day 0 to day 28 in areas with the same amount of dental plaque accumulation showed a lower increase in gingival exudate during the juvenile stage in all dogs.