Black areas on gums following crowns. Dead tissue? Reversible?

Question

I live in Cambodia and had my two top front teeth crowned around a year ago here. I am not sure if they are pure porcelain or fused with metal. Since then my gums have started to develop black areas. I visited a different dentist for a check up and he said that black areas are dead tissue resulting from the removal of nerves during the crowning. This doesn't sound right to me at all. Are my gums dead/dying? Can nerve removal result in the death of gum tissue? What can I do?

Vicki Borowski, DDS · Answer

Without a photograph it is difficult to give you an exact answer. Did you have root canals done on the teeth when the crowns were done? It's possible that you are seeing the root through the gum tissue. Many times when a tooth has a root canal it becomes dark. In the front of the mouth the bone and tissue are very thin so often times you can see the dark root through the tissue. There is really no easy way to handle this situation.

Neville Richter, DDS · Answer

Go see another doctor.  The most common is the metal show-through from the crown. If the gum itself is black there may be contamination from the crown causing gum discoloration.

Black areas on gums following crowns. Dead tissue? Reversible?

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