Prevalence of Tooth Resorptive Lesions in 120 Feline Dental Patients in Israel

J Vet Dent. 2025 Mar;42(2):114-117. doi: 10.1177/08987564231226082. Epub 2024 Jan 31.

Abstract

Tooth resorption (TR) is a common dental condition seen in domestic cats, with a reported prevalence of 29-37.5% in clinically healthy cats and 60.8-67% in cats presenting for dental problems. Radiological and medical records of 120 cats that underwent dental treatment at a private veterinary clinic in Israel between October 2015 and February 2023 were reviewed. Records in which full-mouth radiographs had been obtained were included in the study. Radiographs were screened for TR according to the AVDC classification. Teeth affected by TR were identified in 79/120 (66%) cats. The mean age of cats with TR and non-TR was 8.3 and 6.2 years, respectively. The median age of the TR and non-TR cat populations was 8 and 7 years, respectively. A correlation was found between the number of teeth affected per cat and the age in TR cats. Cats 10 years of age and older, had a TR prevalence of 83.3%. The teeth most commonly affected by TR (82.3%) were the mandibular fourth premolar teeth (308,408).

Keywords: cats; feline odontoclastic resorptive lesions (FORL); fourth premolar; teeth; tooth; tooth resorption (TR).

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cat Diseases* / diagnostic imaging
  • Cat Diseases* / epidemiology
  • Cats
  • Female
  • Israel / epidemiology
  • Male
  • Prevalence
  • Retrospective Studies
  • Tooth Resorption* / diagnostic imaging
  • Tooth Resorption* / epidemiology
  • Tooth Resorption* / veterinary