Does teething cause fevers?

What the evidence says

Teething itself is not a cause of true fever. A well-known prospective study that followed babies daily from 4 months to 1 year old found that while things like drooling, gum-rubbing, irritability and mild temperature upticks were linked to the days around a tooth coming in, a real fever over 102°F (38.9°C) was not associated with teething.

A separate clinical trial that measured babies' temperatures directly around the time of tooth eruption found only a tiny, statistically detectable increase in body temperature on the eruption day itself, still within the normal range, and no real correlation between mothers reporting fever and actual measured fever.

Pediatric sources are consistent on this: teething may cause a slight warming of the body but not a genuine fever. If your baby has a temperature of 38°C (100.4°F) or higher, doctors advise treating it as a real fever and looking for another cause, such as an ear infection, urinary tract infection, or virus, rather than assuming it is 'just teething.' This matters because blaming a real infection on teething can delay needed care.

If your baby is under 3 months old and has any fever, or is under 6 months with a fever, contact a doctor promptly. Teething discomfort itself is usually mild and resolves within a couple of days, so a fever lasting longer or feeling severe deserves medical attention.