Extraction of molars by minimally invasive technique

Equine oral surgery has undergone key advances in the past 10 years, most significantly a move away from traditional invasive surgical procedures performed under general anaesthesia, and a move towards standing, minimally invasive procedures performed with accuracy, guided by patient-side imaging. The past 10 years has seen the development of high quality oral endoscope cameras, lightweight portable patient-side compact digital radiography systems, and standing computed tomography (CT) which allows procedures to be planned with greater accuracy than ever before, and then carried out under constant visual guidance. The key benefits of minimally invasive standing procedures are reduced perioperative mortality rates, reduced post-surgical complication rates, and usually reduced cost to the client. Whilst it may still be some surgeon’s preference to carry out more invasive procedures under full anaesthesia, with some newer techniques being recently described, this is generally becoming less frequent with time. The general shift towards minimally invasive procedures has developed in general from an enhanced understanding of equine dental anatomy and pathologies through recent research, and a more detailed systematic preventative approach to equine dentistry.