TOS Cervical Rib Removal and First Rib removal

Hi Jessbear, 

Sorry Jessbear, I am still waiting for my surgery. Somebody is messing up with my ID and give everyone a good news that I got operated in Feb and possing a fake good picture to everyone. ... As I mentioned earlier in mail that I am still looking any good openion. My surgery is expected in this month.  

is no where safe !! has I have just put to another my hospital notes keep going missing. of which does not help, and have to keep having tests re-done. but still getting know were. hope fully your op will go head for you, good luck.

 

Demerol is probably your best bet or you can try Diladid its 10x stronger than morphine or ask for a fentynly patch its 100x stronger than morphine so dont mess aroud with it. You will probably get atelectasis and PNA if you cant get any pain meds because it will hurt too much to take deep breaths

ORTHOPEDICS : a branch of medicine concerned with the correction or prevention of deformities, disorders, or injuries of the skeleton and associated structures So the doc is a basically telling you he doesn't believe you or he knows whats wrong and he doesn't want to treat it for some reason often insurance. Find out which discs are bulging or herniated and google where the nerves go that come out of it.  You may want to go see either a CT surgeon or a vascular surgeon there are three types of TOS n (nerve) V (vein) a (artery). 85-90% are TOSn. If a doc orders surgery next week its probably TOSa because its the most dangerous. Cervical ribs are on about 6-7% of the population (don't qoute that exactly) and a small percent of those people have symtoms. Indication for surgery is TOSv TOSa and if you are symptomatic with a positive diagnosis for TOSn that is a indication for surgery but not a gaurentee you wil readily get it.  Your symptoms can be interpreted as TOS or something else unfortunatly lots of things cause neuropathy.

Hi, I had surgery for removal of my cervical rib because the tip was knocking against my collar bone and trapping blood vessels and nerves. I saw a vascular surgeon who did a scan and showed me the blood flow periodically stopped when the vessel was trapped. I pushed for years for the right help, keep going and Best of Luck x

Hello !

I had my thoracic outlet syndrome diagnosed 3 weeks ago by a radiologist, they did an MRI, as well as a venogram. It has been 3 weeks since my diagnosis, and I had my rib removal surgery 3 days ago. I'm still in a ridiculous amount of pain, but it is getting easier to manage every day, my advice is to make sure that you have the proper diagnosis before putting yourself through this, also go at ur own pace after the surgery. The doctors told me I can go back to light duty work right away, although with the pain and restricted movement I'm thinking at least a few more weeks, I will keep you all posted on my recovery, any advice on how to get through this easier?

Hi there,

Your msg has been posted quit recently so just want to find out how its been going after your Op? Any improvement? Did they remove your cervical and first rib? Did they go in under your arm or by the neck? Sorry for all the questions im due for my op in 6 weeks time and im sooooo scared... its my first Op and im hoping for all this pain to go away...

Hi Janine,

I'm doing quite well actually thank you! I am now officially 7 weeks post op I had my first rib removed, 2 venograms, and a balloon put in my arteries to open them up. This was all on my right side. I feel great, almost no pain at all now- occasional pins and needles but that's it. I went back to work 6 days after surgery which was tough, but I think getting up and moving helped me heal faster. I was scared just like u are,but I am so grateful I did it! The first 3 weeks are tough then after that it's a cake walk. My scars are healing nicely, I even started going back to the gym recently. All in all, a success . Head up high girl, you will get through it and there is a light at the end of that tunnel .let me know how your surgery goes, and please let me know if you have any questions.

That is such good information. So glad to hear a positive recovery experience. My surgery is scheduled for June 24th and the doctor said that I should be able to go back to work after two weeks and that sounds a little ambitious to me, so I was glad to hear your story.

Are you in the US? If so, do you mind me asking the approximate total cost of the surgery with hospital, Doctor, anesthesia charges? I haven't been able to find that anywhere and I am trying to plan for what we may be responsible for.

Thank you in advance and I hope you continue to do great!

How did your surgery go/ recovery? I'm due to have my left rib removed Sept 14th  

Hello Jasmatic7

I joined this forum as a concerned mom after My daughter had her surgery, right 1st rib removed on September 2, 2016. Her surgery was done above her collar bone.

Her surgery went well but the recovery is a process. One thing she didn't really know or expect was the discomfort in her chest and the difficulty of breathing deeply. She gets winded very easy.

She was on the diladid for 2 days, tramadol for 1 day and now extra strength Tylenol 3900 milligrams a day. And that seems to work.

Her range of motion is very limited but assuming physio will help with that once the doc gives the go ahead.

She never received any instructions for exercising her neck but the good people on this forum have given great ideas.

Her words of wisdom - Take the stool softener in the hospital

Wishing you all the best before, during and after!

Dear Kathy, thank you so much for your note, I really appreciate it. I truly hope your daughter is feeling much beter soon, she's very brave My meds team/ surgeon has conveyed the likely chest discomfort, and have advised limited activity initially post surgery. Does your daughter have bilateral TOS? Great tip re: the stool softner! Duly noted :-) I don't have any physiotherapy planned post surgery. But I have been told that I will get some additional info upon discharge from hospital. Where are you based? I'm in Sydney. 

Hello.

It's Monica, Katy's daughter who had the surgery. No, I don't have bilateral I don't think. They only operated on my right side and don't plan to operate on the left. I formed blood clots On the right which is why the decision was made to have the surgery. It's possible that it's on the left side too but as there are no clotting issues or symptoms, they aren't doing anything. Do you have bilateral?

I'm glad the note was helpful. and thank you for the well wishes. I hope your surgery goes well too and your recovery is speedy.

Oh, and we are in Ontario Canada

Hi Monica. It's really nice to meet you, albeit virtually Thanks for your well wishes. I'm a little nervous and excited all at the same time. Yes, my issue is bilateral, but it took various doctors years to figure it out. I had DVT and PE in 2008 (at 26). But no diagnosis of TOS until 2013 when "the issue" re-surfaced. In 2013 I was diagnosed with TOS on my left side first. Then only last year (2015) also diagosed on my right (and at this stage last year, I did have clots again in my left and right subclavian vein/s). I will likely need surgery on both sides.....One day at a time  

Hi Jas,

Happy (in the relieved kinda way) to find others going through this! I'm in Brisbane and have TOS left side, dr said "full house," i.e arterial, venous & neurogenic compression. Biggest problems are narrowing of the artery and vein to the point of occlusion so have been put on waiting list as Cat 2 and expect to go in Nov or Dec. Apparently this dr is really good and I met a young girl there who'd had the surgery and made me feel heaps better about it! Scar (just above collarbone) was barely visible and said she was pretty pain free after about 2 wks. Dr warned me about deep breathing so am curious. Would it be ok to keep us updated with your progress? I can't wait to have mine done!! I love weight training and arm is giving me hell. My left scalene muscle and others surrounding are so tight and I have headaches every day! Do you have these symptoms too?

Hi Amerese. Nice to meet you. I'm not sure about the extent of mine (I'm hoping to get away without having to put stents in the vein/s after removing the rib/s. Surgeon doesn't think so. But I know more after the op. They'll d an ultrasound wihtout the rib to check, give it a chance to recover on it's own.They're taking mine out from the side. So just under the armpit. Yes, I always have headaches, and neck stiffness. I've been told not to exert myself too much after the operation. That I will feel discomfort in my chest. I will let you  know how I go :-) Happy to share :-) 

Nice to virtually meet you too and thanks for the reply!!

My diagnosis just came from comparing a recent ultrasound with one from late 2014, no other tests so mine probably isn't even that bad lol,especially after reading what you've been through!  Doc never said I had clots yet or anything so I hope they don't find any when they go in :p. Times must have been a bit scary for you with DVT, PE then clots later!! Good thing the docs finally picked up what was wrong! I hope you don't need stents either and recover fast!

A physio who was very familiar with TOS was the one who picked up on mine and told me to get a referal to this particular vascular specialist after having pain for about 10yrs... or since I was about 22/23 (05/06).

I think my problem was brought on by a work related repetitive strain injury.

Wishing you all the best for tomorrow!!! Really hope it goes smoothly, complication free!

Btw, I think Kathy's daughter's words of wisdom are definately worth noting, especially if they put you on Endone (oxycodone) after the surgery .  Post sinus op experience.  I personally will ask for codeine if the pain killer issue is forced.

Thanks for sharing and all the best!!!

P.S Sorry for the essay, I'm a real waffler!

Hello Amerese! Everything went really well with my surgery. Today is Friday. My surgery was on the Wednesday morning. Tomorrow I am being discharged. My surgeon removed about 90% of the rib. I felt pretty fine the day of the surgery. Was a little nauseous, light headed with more pain the morning after the surgery. But by the time the afternoon came around I felt comfrotable on pain killers.When the pain killers wear off I can feel my chest is a little sore. Nothing too catastrophic though. And nothing that has stopped me from resting. I've been taking Endone and Panadol for the pain. I am very happy and releived it is over.  

Hi Jas!

Good to hear from you and glad every seems to have gone so well! You must have had a really great dr, the range of motion you've described is impressive, wouldn't have expected that ?. Shame about the damage to the vein and needing a stent, but I guess if it helps with ease of blood flow and prevents further damage then it's a good thing.

Bet you cant wait to go home, I'd be missing my cats lol. It's good to hear the pain is manageable and you're able to rest alright. Hopefully that's a good sign for your recovery at home ?; nothing beats your own bed and real food!

Thanks for the reply and wishing you a speedy recovery ahead... how good will it be, no more headaches etc!! All the best!

Hi again Jas,

Just thought I'd check in and see how you're feeling. Hope everything's going ok for you 😊

Hey Amerese! So I was in hospital for three nights. Second and third day at home were the hardest for me as I tried to figure out how many pain killers I should be taking. They made me feel terrible (endone) so I had to find a balance between the pain / borderline nausea. Overall, my pain/ discomfort level felt more like g-forces pressing down on my chest (sneezing and couging hurt like hell).  It kind of felt light my insides were not connected when sitting up or laying down (that's the best way I can descrbe it). My airwaves are still feeling kind of restricted, but it'a better every day and  bareable. I'm still pretty swollen just under my neck. Today I went for my first walk outside in the sunshine. On Tuesday I am having a stent put into my subclavian vein (left). Surgeon is saying it will take about a month to get use to. Onward! P.S - Whilst on Endone what worked for me was prune tea, honey in warm water and psyllium husks!!!