Can a Tooth Infection Cause a Fever?

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Can you help me figure something out? I was under the impression that a tooth infection can cause a fever. My daughter has been getting a low grade fever on and off. The doctor can’t find anything wrong with her. She did complain about her tooth during one of the fevers. I tried to get her into the dental office for an urgent care visit, but they said that tooth infections don’t cause fevers, so I should go back to the doctor. I don’t know what to do at this point. Wfhen I asked them to help me understand how they can discount that it has anything to do with her teeth they just told me to schedule an appointment to ask questions.

Tracy

Dear Tracy,

A young girl in a pediatirc dental chair

I am glad you wrote. I am hoping there was some miscommunication between you and your pediatric dental office. Maybe they meant that many dental infection do not cause a significant fever. However, any infection in the body, including dental, can cause a fever. When it comes to oral health, children can run fevers for both a dental infection or even for teething.

What concerns me more than the miscommunication or even the misinformation is their unwillingness to explain things to you or address your concerns. They were willing to schedule an appointment for you to ask questions, but not for your daughter to be examined? This puzzles me. I feel like you would be better served with a different pediatric dentist.

As for your daughter, if her tooth is hurting, you want to get it checked out. If this dentist won’t do it, find another. I would not consider it a dental emergency unless you see an abscess on her gum (it would look like a pimple on her gum), or if there is some swelling. Other than that, just call around to some pediatric dentists or general dentists who treat children and see if they can get you in in a reasonable timeframe.

This blog is brought to you by Marietta Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.

Can Teething Cause a Fever?

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I have an 8 1/2 month old who keeps getting fevers, but we can’t find a reason why. He’s fussy and his lower gums are swollen. Can teething cause fevers? If you don’t mind a second question, a friend of ours said we need to cut his gums to make room for the teeth. That sounds dangerous to me, but this is our first child so we don’t really know what we’re doing.

Laura Anne

Dear Laura Anne,

Fussy, teething baby

You have good instincts. Please don’t cut your baby’s gums or sign him up for surgery. As the root of the tooth grows, it causes pressure on the gums and eventually they erupt. If you cut the gums to erupt the teeth prematurely, the roots will not be completely developed, which could lead to them not having the support they need in order to stay in place.

As to fevers, sometimes teething can cause a mild fever. There are other symptoms as well. You’ve already mentioned fussiness. You may also see your child drool, have difficulty sleeping, and even a decrease in his appetite. You can treat this with some children’s Tylenol in appropriate doses. There is also a Baby Oragel you can rub on his gums, which will temporarily numb the gums.

An Exception to Opening the Gums

Though you never want to open the gums for baby teeth, there could be a time when referring to your child’s adult teeth erupting that some assistance may be required. If you notice that your son’s adult teeth are coming in, but the baby teeth are not loose enough to be removed, that is the time to get some dental assistance.

Otherwise, the baby teeth will deflect the adult teeth and lead to the need for orthodontics when he is older. Don’t try to do this yourself. See your pediatric dentist to have the baby teeth removed if that occurs.

This blog is brought to you by East Cobb Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.

Is Dental Work Really Necessary on a Six-Year Old?

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I am a little frustrated with our pediatric dentist. First, he got onto me about the amount of decay on my 6 year old’s teeth. I have him brush, but it never seems to help. He acted like I neglected him. Second, he’s saying that he needs a lot of dental work, including three fillings, a pulpotomy, two tooth extractions, and a space maintainer. This is going to cost a pretty penny and I don’t understand why it is even necessary. Aren’t those teeth just going to fall out anyway to make room for adult teeth?

Margaret

Dear Margaret,

Boy smiling while holding a toothbrush

I’m glad you wrote. Let’s start with the decay. If he’s brushing every day (twice a day) and you take him to the dentist twice a year, then obviously you are doing everything that you know how to do. One thing that will help has more to do with food than hygiene. Your son’s saliva is a secret weapon against tooth decay because it contains bacteria fighting minerals. However, if he is snacking a lot or drinking a lot of sugary drinks, such as juice or soda, then his saliva doesn’t have time to do its job.

When you can’t explain the amount of decay, try reducing his snacking to once a day and making sure he is drinking mostly water. It may be challenging the first few days if he is not used to that, but there are great payoffs for standing firm. Aside from significantly less decay, he’ll also get better at eating during regular meal times.

What About All That Dental Work?

While it is true that his baby teeth will fall out, his back teeth need to stay in place until he is around twelve years old. If they come out prematurely, it will cause his other teeth to shift into the empty space. This will lead to overcrowding as his adult teeth erupt, which also means expensive orthodontics for you.

If your pediatric dentist is doing a space maintainer, I am going to assume that means one of the teeth being extracted is a back tooth. The space maintainer will help keep that space available for when his twelve year molars come in. Depending on the significance of the decay and whether or not there is an infection present will determine the need for the other treatments, such as the pulpotomy or the fillings.

A pulpotomy, which is a child’s version of a root canal treatment, tells me that something has blown up into an infection. If that is the case, you will definitely want to get the procedure. People still die from untreated tooth infections. This isn’t something to mess around with.

This blog is brought to you by Marietta Dentist Dr. Cristi Cheek.