Koda, a young polar bear at the Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, has had a root canal.
The operation was done by Dr. Tom Klein, a veterinary dentist at Ohio State University, and Dr. David Regine, who normally works on human teeth.
Koda's keepers noticed the problem last month, when the bear appeared to be tired. That is when they found the big, fang-like tooth on the lower right side of his jaw was chipped.
Animals in the wild have very good healing powers, but the infection in the bear's tooth could have spread to its jaw if the dentists hadn't helped, Klein said.
The size of the bear's tooth required the dentists to improvise, because dental tools used on humans were not large enough. That is common when working on animals, Regine said.
"Some of the things I used were plumbing supplies," Regine said. "I used a turkey skewer. You have to use your imagination."
"I guess Koda's just going to grin and bear it," Regine said. (AP)
匹茲堡動物園和PPG水族館的北極幼熊「酷達」
，接受了根管治療手術。
這項手術是由俄亥俄州立大學的動物牙醫師湯姆．克萊，以及通常為人類看牙的大衛．瑞金醫生操刀。
上個月，酷達的看護人注意到牠略顯疲態，他們發現酷達下顎右下方的犬牙被削落。
克萊表示，野生動物的癒合能力非常好，但如果沒有牙醫的協助，熊牙的感染可能會擴散到下顎。
瑞金表示，由於人類牙醫器材不夠大，牙醫必須
根據熊牙的尺寸調整，因為用在人類牙齒上的工具不夠大。修補動物牙齒時常會出現的這種情況。
「我用的一些東西像是抽水機。」瑞金︰「我還用過土耳其烤肉叉。你得發揮想像力才行。」
瑞金說︰「我想酷達也只好逆來順受了。」
（美聯社╱翻譯︰鄭湘儀）
1. root canal n.phr.
根管治療 (gen1 guan3 zhi4 liao2)
例: The dentist said that I need a root canal.
(牙醫說我需要做根管治療。)
2. fang n.
犬齒 (quan2 chi3)
例: Tigers have big, sharp fangs.
(老虎有又大又利的犬齒。)
3. chip v.i. /v.t.
削落 (xiao1 luo4)
例: Be careful not to chip the paint on the door.
(小心別將門上的漆削落。)
4. improvise v.i. /v.t.
臨時湊成 (lin2 shi2 cou4 cheng2)
例: We don't have a spoon, so we'll have to improvise.
(我們沒有湯匙，只得臨時湊合著用。)
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