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Doctors may have more than one area of specialty interest. Board certification in a specialty area means the doctor has completed formal training and has practice experience in that specialty, and has passed the certification examination from the corresponding accredited medical specialty board.
Dentistry
Languages spoken
English
Doctor Q&A
46 Answers
0 Agrees
The number of answers this doctor has agreed with.
A 44-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
How deep are they?: Depends on how much surgery is required to get them out, your general health, how you heal after surgery, if they are infected, and medications you ma... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 41-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Bacteria: Your gums are infected, most likely. Bacteria have invaded the gums and your body is fighting off the infection using inflammation - causes the gums ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 33-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Maybe reflux: Miriam6, you may be experiencing gastric reflux disease (gerd) where the muscle that's supposed to seal the top of your stomach may not be functioning... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 45-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Infection can: If your gums are infected around your wisdom teeth, all of those symptoms can result.
More likely, your lip is not swollen, but numb like when th... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 36-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Maybe: But even if you do, your body will soon get used to the feeling of having the retainer and those gagging sensations will go away.
Put your new reta... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 36-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Caffiene: People have different sensitivites to caffiene - they recently found a genetic part to this - so you may be extra sensitive. Cut out all forms of caff... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 36-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Depends!: Everyone is different - depends on why the tooth has to come out and maybe on the skill of the dentist. Also on how well you take care of it after th... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 34-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
He may be generous: Almost every dentist does some charity care - often it is the very best dentists who have plenty of patients able to pay that gives her/him resources ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 33-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Maybe: How long has it been? Did you finish your braces as a teen and now you're 33? Then it won't work.
Retainers are passive devices aimed at keepin... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 31-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Probably: Tell your doctor you have both medications to take for different reasons. They both cause sleepiness, so the dose of one or both may need to be adjust... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 43-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Not much difference: Both breathing loudly and snoring are signs that the air is moving through too small of a passage - the energy required makes the tissue vibrate, caus... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 24-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Nearly endless: Obesity challenges your body in many ways. The extra work your systems have to do to overcome the circulation and airway problems of extra work from ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 36-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Maybe: While the sugar-free soda doesn't have the main cause of cavities, the ph of the soda is very acidic - and that acid attacks teeth. Also, kids are ge... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 45-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Sometimes: There are specific, very uncommon genetic conditions that cause weak teeth. More commonly, teeth have different levels of resistance to disease that ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 37-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
There is a medicine: Ask you dentist if he or she has a drug called 'oraverse.' this is a special medication that takes away the numbness quickly. Another technique just... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 41-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Could be fractured: You don't say if the back tooth has had a crown on it, but after root canals, molars can break if you grind on them. Dentists put crowns on these tee... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 26-year-old female asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
May be bacteria: Plaque that collects near the gums can have a type of bacteria that uses what you eat to produce a dark sticky protien that makes your gumline look ba... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 43-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Call your doctor: It may be just fine for you to take the medications, but please call your surgeon's office to ask this question, and plan to have someone drive you.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 18-year-old female asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Nasal airway small?: You may have a blockage in your nasal airway that makes your voice sound the way it does. If you can't breathe easily through your nose, the air has t... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 42-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Mostly, No Wheat: My wife and my cousin are 'gluten free' gluten is found in all wheat products and many packaged foods, not in any animal products. Look for labels no... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 41-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Probably not: Most painkillers are taken for the short term and have little or none known triggers for tooth grinding. Chronic pain, however, is well known to disr... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 48-year-old male asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Treating sleep?: Your medications can help with many of these problems, but how is your sleep apnea treatment going? More than half of those who are supposed to use t... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 19-year-old female asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
OK to Breathe : Yes, you can breathe through your mouth but it's interesting to think of why you want to do that? How long since the surgery? If it is uncomfortable... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 29-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Probably: Bruxism is poorly understood and no one knows why anyone does this harmful action. One good theory is that people who brux have muscles that are more ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 33-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Not much: We very rarely use this for bruxism because it does not address anything found to be a cause of bruxism. Side effects of drowsiness and feeling lousy... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 35-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Healing varies: Sometimes after even great looking root canals healing is incomplete or the body doesn't react as expected. The most conservative thing to do is to r... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 30-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Might be GERD: Be sure to have your doctor check you out for gastric reflux - your dry cough may be the result of irritated tissue in your throat. Stomach acid can c... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.5k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 40-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Tough one!: First of all, congratulations for flossing! thinking about why it got so stuck there's probably something wrong with a filling or crown on one of tho... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 43-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Whitening works: As we age, the core of our teeth (dentin) gains color (more yellow) and the enamel that may be masking that color gets thinner. The good news is that... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 24-year-old female asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
You'll be fine: No reason to let infected teeth get worse for 28 more weeks, then worry during breastfeeding! go ahead and get them fixed. Anesthetic and treatment ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 33-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Cut your lip?: If you were hit hard enough, you could have cut the inside of your mouth with your tooth.
Or your gums may be bleeding around that tooth. Have your... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 44-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Give up?: I can't imagine a specialist giving up if there is any chance of completing the therapy. Possibly there is a blockage in the tooth canal she/he canno... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 46-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Several days: You should always take antibiotics until the bottle is empty - often the signs of infection are gone long before your body is finished fighting it off... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 31-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Ask your surgeon: You may or may not need to stop your medication depending on the extent of the surgery required to take the tooth out. Talk to the dentist first.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 20-year-old male asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Insomnia is complex: Exercise is good for sleeping; insomnia takes many forms and sometimes it is hard to recognize. You can talk to a board certified sleep specialist to... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 39-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Cheap: You can try simply tuning a clock radio between stations, at a very low volume. There are other options, but this one is free.
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 36-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Is it breathing?: If the sleep disorder you are asking about is obstructive sleep apnea, you can use a nose mask called a cpap; often children respond well to having ov... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 47-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Saliva is Good!: Tooth enamel is constantly being depleted by minerals when you eat acid, and minerals are constantly being deposited by saliva. When a tooth has a we... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years agoMerged
A 30-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Not just how much: Can also be what you bit on or what hit your tooth. Doesn't matter much, because the bruised ligament will heal very quickly if you don't challenge i... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 46-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Like your phone: Blue tooth is a wonderful thing. Electrical pulses that trigger your heart function are easy to detect and send to a wireless monitor. Units these d... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 29-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Blocks out stuff: White noise is helpful for some people because it floods the senses with a signal that doesn't require any thinking to sort out - it's not the same a... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 42-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Connected Signs: Acid in your throat from reflux will create small patches of irritated tissue, which triggers coughs and hiccupping. One commonly found problem adding... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.5k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 38-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
In short, no: Your body generally does an excellent job of regulating your core temperature, so it's not something you need to be concerned about. Heart rate is al... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 33-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Bad stuff hides: Sometimes it is very hard to tell if bad things are happening under crowns, because we can't see under them, and x-rays don't show under them either. ... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsReviewed >2 years ago
A 47-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
Two ways: Removable bridges don't need back teeth, but they do need healthy other teeth to hold steady. You can also have missing back teeth replaced with tita... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
A 45-year-old member asked:
Dr. Stephen Carstensenanswered
Dentistry 40 years experience
How deep is it?: Gingivitis is a shallow disease of the gumline. If your teeth have sharp, infected, tartar crusting on them like barnacles, there is nothing except sc... Read More
Created for people with ongoing healthcare needs but benefits everyone.
5.7k viewsAnswered >2 years ago
TestimonialsRecommendations and Thank you notes are endorsements given from patients or other doctors.
Recommendations and Thank you notes are endorsements given from patients or other doctors.
2
Recommendations
88
Thank you notes
HealthTap member
Mar 30, 2015
Dr. Carstensen is an amazing doctor! #nationaldoctorsday2015 #virtualflower1
HealthTap member
Mar 31, 2015
Dr. Carstensen is an amazing doctor! #nationaldoctorsday2015 #virtualflower1
HealthTap member
Thank you, your answer was very helpful!
HealthTap member
Thank you, your answer was very helpful!
HealthTap member
Thank you, your answer was very helpful!
Education & Training
Medical/Graduate school
Baylor College of Dentistry
Graduated 1983MD
Awards
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