I am in my second trimester of pregnancy and I have a tooth that is very sensitive to both the cold and air. How can I tell if it is infected? I don’t want to chance an infection spreading to my baby, but I don’t want to get an x-ray either. Will there be a fever with an infection? I haven’t had that, so maybe it is sensitive for another reason. What do you think?

Bailey-New Mexico

Bailey,

You won’t have to worry about a spreading infection if you have cold/air sensitivity. So that is good news. Even if there is an infection, it is slight and confined to the tooth. Without an x-ray we’ll just go with good vs. bad signs to look for. First the good signs: If the sensitivity is gradually getting better or staying the same, that is a good sign. If the sensitivity is only when the tooth is cold, and it feels better when it warms up, that is a good sign. Now the bad signs: If the sensitivity lingers after the cold stimulus that is a bad sign. If the tooth begins to hurt without any cold/air stimulus that is a bad sign that something is wrong that will not get better, and you may need a root canal.

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