Macropod progressive periodontal disease (MPPD), or ‘lumpy jaw’, has long been recognised as the most common cause of morbidity and mortality in this taxon in managed care situations.
However, it is not simply a disease of managed care; macropods are inherently susceptible. The disease has been described in free-ranging macropods of various species (Arundel et al.
1977; Miller and Beighton 1979; Barber et al. 2008), including outbreaks associated with periods of environmental stress (Borland et al. 2012), and in the 26 000-yr-old jaw bones of extinct macropods (Horton and Samuel 1978).MPPD is defined here as ‘multifactorial progressive inflammatory and necrotising polymicrobial disease associated with predominantly anaerobic opportunistic bacterial infection of the soft tissue and bony structures supporting the teeth, including gingivitis, periodontitis and mandibular/maxillary osteomyelitis.’
In most cases, MPPD likely initiates in the periodontium and progresses to osteomyelitis. However, a range of potential pathogeneses and predisposing factors can lead to equivalent clinicopathological outcomes (Fig. 32.1) with common principles of diagnosis and treatment. Hence, all potential pathogeneses and all stages in the progression of this disease complex should practically be considered within the one syndrome. Subsequent to the initial publication of this volume, Hoyer et al. (2020) argued that oral disease that originates in endodontic tissues (which may progress to involve the periodontium), such as occurs with trauma to the incisors, should be considered separately to the definition of MPPD proposed here.
1.