Metal Mouth Message Board

In October I had my first bicuspid removed and now my canine, that is right next to it, is looking a little discolored. In the mirror, I notice it looks darker in color then the rest of my teeth. Has anyone else experienced this?

I am guessing you have an amalgam (silver) filling in your first molar? Enamel is translucent so if you have silver underneath you can see it. Dentin is typically more yellow which is very different than silver. If you remove the amalgam you will remove the dark shadow in the tooth.

Best,
Rory

Thanks for the response Rory, however, I don't have a filling in my canine. I'll have to wait until my next appointment with my ortho and see what he thinks.

Thanks
Deb

Hi Deb,

I may have misunderstood. The way I understand it you do not have either your first or second premolar. So you have a canine next to a molar. And your molar looks darker than your canine? Or is your canine darker than the molar? Canines tend to be the darkest tooth in the arch and are also the hardest to whiten. If you are saying the canine is darker then that is normal. If your molar is darker and does not have any restorations then that is another story. Do you have a pic?

Take Care,
Rory

Dear Rory,

Sorry for the confusion. I had my 1st molars extracted. One particular canine in front of one of the gaps looks darker then the rest of my teeth. I'm just hoping that there wasn't some type of nerve damage done. I can't imagine that happening but you never know. I use Crest toothpaste and Crest Rinse, and I've been brushing with baking soda too. I'm hoping that the baking soda will work.

Unfortunately I do not have any pics, I hope to soon.

I appreciate your responses.

Thanks
Deb

Hi Deb,

Baking soda and whitening toothpastes will not give you any noticable change. Your best bet is an in office whitening or (my preference) whitening trays. And the only real way to get your canine to look the same color as your other teeth is a veneer or crown. Or you could try whitening only the canine's, but that is not fun Just realize it is perfectly normal for the canine to be darker (big tooth, all that dentin under there...) and if you look at most people "They all look like that"

Best,
Rory

Hey Rory,
Thanks for the advice. I just can't understand what happened because it just became darker...almost overnight. Oh well, as soon as these braces come off, I hope to get my teeth whitened (professionally).
Thanks again!
Deb