Tooth discoloration

Answer: have u ever had an accident?

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By the sounds of it you may have a cavity or have you ever hit or bumped that tooth before. Teeth with cavites tend to turn a color but its when the tooth becomes gray thats an indication that you had trauma to the tooth in the past. When a tooth is hit or bumped it may show signs of turning gray. It may not be right away and can take months or years for this to happen. It is a sign that the nerve is dying. the unfortunate thing is you can not reverse this. You may need a root canal if you are having sensitvity with cold or hot and biting into things.I would recommend going to you dentist or an endodontist to see if this is the case. They will be able to test the tooth and and the nerve to see if a root canal is needed. This really should have nothing to do with you getting a retainer to close your gap or space. This again may have been a result of something that happened recently or a long time ago. If you do not need a crown placed on the tooth there is something called internal bleaching. This is where the dentist will place a small hole behind the tooth and use something like bleach to try to lighten the tooth. It does not hurt if you had a root canal because there are no nerves left in that tooth for you to feel anything. This procedure may take a few times. Bleaching alone will not lighten the tooth. It will lighten the teeth around it but not the tooth itself. Its the same as if you were to have a fillling or crown done on a tooth the tooth will not change lighter because it is not your actual tooth. Sorry to venture off into bleaching but just wanted you to know what options were out there.