Traumatized tooth question

[JAlfredPrufrock]

Hi there,

Roughly a year ago, I fell on some cement steps and damaged my front tooth. My dentist says that only the enamel cracked, but that I was ultimately fine. My tooth turned very slightly darker almost immediately after the fall (the dentist saw this), and has remained that way ever since, without any more darkening to my knowledge. Every now and again, I experience some minor mobility and sensitivity to cold.

So, I have a few questions:

Is it possible that my tooth is dying even though there has been know signs of worsening over the last year, or is this just "how it is" now? Would it help AT ALL to bleach the tooth using an at-home whitener? The difference is minor, but it still bugs me, nonetheless.

Here's a picture:

https://imgur.com/a/xhDDg3I

Thanks for your help!

 

[Dr M]

Good day

Usually if a tooth turns grey in colour, after a traumatic incident, it might be indicative that the nerve has died due to the incident. The fact that the tooth is sometimes mobile, might be indicative that there is also some peri-apical pathology ( root tip problem ). My advice would be to go and see dentist, to have an x-ray taken and to have pulp tests done on the tooth. Most likely the tooth will need a root canal to be done. After the tooth has been root canal treated, non-vital bleaching can be done to restore the colour, although the results is unpredictable and the process would have to be repeated after a certain amount of time. Another option would be to crown the tooth, which would be a more permanent option.