My wisdom tooth was removed and at first everything was fine. Then things started to go wrong. First, the area where it was extracted started getting sensitive to cold. Now the sensitivity has spread to the whole arch. Is this a normal side effect that goes away or is there a real problem?
Robin
Dear Robin,
I would like you to go back and see your dentist. Something is off here. Occasionally, when a wisdom tooth is extracted it will have some sensitivity to cold, including cold air. When this happens, it is usually because a part of the bone that was attached to the tooth becomes exposed. That will cause the tooth next to it to be a bit sensitive.
There are a couple of ways to help deal with this. First, you could try treating it with a toothpaste specifically designed for sensitive teeth, like Sensodyne. If that doesn’t work, there is a desensitizing treatment a dentist can provide. That being said, I don’t think that is what is going on in your situation. Even when sensitivity does actually happen, it should not spread to other teeth, especially an entire arch.
Though, sometimes one tooth can be sensitive and the other teeth can feel like they are, they are just having referred pain. However, I wouldn’t take this and run with it, thinking everything is fine. If I were in your place, I would at least have my dentist look at it, because it is equally likely that you can have an infection brewing somewhere which will need to be treated.
If an infection is left untreated, it becomes a dental emergency. Those can spread outside of your tooth and turn life threatening. Every year people die from untreated tooth infections.
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