Spontaneous periodontal disease in the mongolian gerbil

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Abstract
The pathogenesis of periodontal lesions in the Mongolian gerbil (meriones ungiculatus) was studied in sixty‐one animals varying in age from two months to five years. Both gross morphologic and histological techniques were employed. The results of this investigation indicate a slowly progressing, insidious form of inflammatory periodontal breakdown in this animal apparently related to the accumulation of plaque and calculus‐like accretions. Because of the many morphologic similarities of the periodontal lesion in the gerbil to those of the human periodontal problem, it is felt that this animal is ideally suited for periodontal research.