Internal resorption is an unusual condition of a tooth

Tooth

Teeth are small, calcified, whitish structures found in the jaws of many vertebrates that are used to break down food. Some animals, particularly carnivores, also use teeth for hunting or for defensive purposes. The roots of teeth are embedded in the Mandible bone or the Maxillary bone and are...

 when the dentin and pulpal walls begin to resorb centrally within the root canal. The first evidence of the lesion may be the appearance of a pink-hued area on the crown

Crown (tooth)

In dentistry, crown refers to the anatomical area of teeth, usually covered by enamel. The crown is usually visible in the mouth after developing below the gingiva and then erupting into place.-References:...

 of the tooth; this condition is referred to as pink tooth of Mummery

Pink tooth of Mummery

A pink tooth of Mummery, named after British biologist James Howard Mummery, is a tooth exhibiting a pinkish hue as a result of hematologic staining of the dentin....

, after the 19th century anatomist James Howard Mummery

James Howard Mummery

John Howard Mummery, CBE, FRCS was a British dentist and microscopist.He was the son of John Rigden Mummery, a dentist, qualified MRCS in 1870 and as a dentist in 1873...

, and represents the hyperplastic, vascular pulp tissue filling-in the resorbed areas.

The cause can sometimes be attributed to trauma to the tooth, but other times there is no known etiology

Etiology

Etiology is the study of causation, or origination. The word is derived from the Greek , aitiologia, "giving a reason for" ....

. If the condition is discovered prior to perforation of the crown or root has occurred, endodontic therapy

Endodontic therapy

Endodontic therapy is a sequence of treatment for the pulp of a tooth which results in the elimination of infection and protection of the decontaminated tooth from future microbial invasion...

(root canal therapy) may be carried out with the expectation of a fairly high success rate.