Black flakes from under crown

[Poobah]

I had a crown put on a molar last year.  Five months later I started noticing hot/cold senstations when eating.  I finally went to the Dentist a couple of months ago for a this and another problem.  He decided to address the other problem first.  In the meantime, my tooth has started not only being sensitive to heat/cold, but aching also.  I started taking antibiotics last night.  It is still too early to see any improvment, but I noticed one thing last night when using my water pic.  I noticed that there are black flakes coming out from under the crown.  The first time I saw it, I thought it might be something I ate.  But yesterday, I didn't eat anything like black pepper or with any black color in it.  

What might this be?  Could it be my tooth that is disintergrating?  !!!  I can't go back to my dentist until Tuesday, but I'm worried.

Thanks in advance!

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

My initial guess is that it may be decay underneath your crown.  But assuming you use a waterpik and have good oral hygiene, it seems quite rapid to have decay so soon after placement of a crown.  

It may be food particles.  If your dentist was notified of it and didn't notice any obvious signs of decay, I think its probably a temporary thing.  Clean the area well again and see if more flakes come out.  Also, let him/her know about the sensitivity.  It may indicate you need a root canal or a cleaning.

[Poobah]

Thank you for replying to my post.  I brush my teeth 3 times a day and use a waterpik after lunch and dinner, seeing I don't eat breakfast.  I don't always brush right after my meals, but do brush always 3 times a day.  Most of the time I rinse my mouth with water if I can't brush right away.

I have an appt. tomorrow with my dentist.  He says he will do a RC if needed.

I honestly think my tooth is decaying because it even has a foul odor coming from under the crown.

I had much dental work done, but don't remember ever having the dentist do anything to my teeth to prepare them for crowns except to file them down.  Only 2 were RC'd.  Is that normal?  Most of the teeth that were filed down, had fillings in them from many years ago.  So it would seem that some kind of medication or taking away decay would be necessary before putting the crown on, wouldn't it?  Maybe the reason this tooth (and others) are not doing so well is because the dentist didn't cure them acurately before placing the crowns on them?  

I will let you know how it goes tomorrow.  

Thanks for your time!

[Jerome Tsang, DDS]

That's excellent.  I'm glad the majority of your crowns did not require a root canal prior to placement.

There is a condition called pulpal degeneration in which injury to the pulp can cause the irreversible damage and cause the pulp to degenerate and begin to die.  Any combination of things can trigger it and there's no set threshold as to how much damage is required to start this process.  Injury can include cracks, cavities, drilling, etc.  Its possible that the placement of the crown and replacing a filling that previous had a cavity (and possibly might have had another cavity more recently, hence the need for a new crown) can cause this pulpal degeneration.