should a crown touch the gum ?

[robroy777888]

I have recently had root canal treatment, no pain from the tooth now
had a temporary plastic crown fitted until the metal one was made and it felt fine
when the metal one was fitted i felt a slight pain when the dentist put it in but he said it was just the crown touching the gum, it's not sore now but the gum above the crown has changed colour, went kinda white on the inside and outside of the gum
is this ok ? should the crown even be touching the gum ?

[Thelma-Louise]

Normally they do fit the crown slightly below the gum line to prevent exposure of the tooth's structure which reduces the likelihood for future infections, etc and to prevent the "margin" from being exposed which sometimes can take away from the tooth's appearance. It could be however that it is too far down - this often pushes the gum away from the tooth and can cause gum recession around the crown over time so you should probably go back to your dentist and ask him to evaluate it.

[robroy777888]

im going back for another filling in 2 weeks, think I should go back before then?
as i say there's no pain but the gum changing colout doesnt seem right, although there are othr parts of my gum that look the same colour,

[Thelma-Louise]

I don't think its an emergency unless you start bleeding around the area so it should be OK until you go in at your next scheduled appt. The whiteness of the gum is due to it being pushed or pressured by the crown - similar to what happens if you get a splinter - the area around it will whiten as the blood supply near the surface is restricted. The bigger issue is what will happen long term - if anything - but what you don't want is for the tissue to be so stressed it begins to recede or become inflamed enough that a pocket will form. If the dentist thinks its OK for now it might be one of those things you will just have to keep your eye on and report any changes you notice to him as they occur.