A giant panda at the San Diego Zoo, California, has undergone dental treatment to rebuild a tooth that was chipped; the panda, named Bai Yun, gnaws bamboo shoots for up to twelve hours a day, so she has had to get the tooth chip repaired to make sure she doesn’t lose weight. The teeth of giant pandas can become worn or damaged over time so repair is necessary in captive bears.
Bai Yun, who is 23-years-old, had to be put under general anaesthetic so that the veterinary team could take X-rays and repair the damaged tooth. As with similar treatments for human teeth, a composite resin material was applied to fill in the broken area and restore the tooth to full function. A curing light was then used to seal the filling and the panda’s teeth were thoroughly cleaned while Bai Yun was unconscious.
Meg Sutherland-Smith, associate director of veterinary services at the San Diego Zoo, said that there was no damage to the pulp canal, although the chip was ‘very close’ to breaking through to the centre of the tooth structure. She added ‘What we attempted to do was a restorative procedure to cover up the part of the tooth that was chipped to, hopefully, prevent any further chipping or deterioration.’