Hello all,
After having a hard time finding an experienced doctor in New Hampshire , I had an appt. with Dr. Paydarfar from Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon affiliated with Dartmouth Medical college . He specializes in neck and throat cancers and has done several Eagles surgeries. He seemed very knowledgeable and said he does the surgeries using the DaVinci robotic tool - I guess is less invasive and minimizes recovery time. Does anybody have an experience with this type of internal surgery? I am seeing him again on the first of March , surgery scheduled for the 12th.
Also has anybody’s styloid kept getting larger? My seems to, the lump in my throat seems to get bigger :-(.
Thank you for replies
Hana
I do not know about the Davinci tool. I think Dr. Samji may use something like that, but not sure. As far as the lump growing.
Yes, it does and can continue until it is removed. I know mine was a small thin thing years ago and dismissed it because I have an underdeveloped jaw and thought it was something that belonged there but was sort of crooked or out of place.
Believe me, by the time, it started causing issues about 7 years later, it was really big and easy to point out to the doctor.
It seemed that it closed off the drainage for my salivary glands and eventually I had difficulty with swelling and pain in my face and had to push on my face and my inside of my mouth to release the saliva. That does not seem to be a normal symptom but it is gone now.
I don't trust robots, see matrix for examples...
Just kidding, it sounds awesome, I just wonder how the da vinci works with such a relatively rare and unknown surgery you know? It seems like an amazing option for complex but common surgeries.
Hi Hana! Did you ever go through with the robotic surgery? If so, how did it go? How was recovery? I’m scheduled for January 31st. Thanks!
Pinkeagle,
Hana doesn’t seem to have returned to the community since we moved to the new platform. I sent her an email saying that you’d been asking how she is, and that you’d been asking about her.
I hope she follows the instructions and comes back to answer your question.
All the best to you in your upcoming surgery
Seenie from Moderator Support
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Hi!
I did go through and it worked great! My doctor was able to remove part of the bone and did not have to take my tonsils so the recovery time was very short. I had sore throat for about a week but I am symptom free for couple of years now. So far no regrowth. My doctor was very good but I feel the DaVinci tool helped with making the incision smaller and allowing me to keep my tonsils. Good luck with your surgery!
Hana
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Thank you! I’m glad it went well for you! I’m hoping to be symptom free soon. It sounds like you didn’t have problems with the other side, which is good news. Thanks, Sonja
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Hi again Hana! I am almost two weeks post op now and I am only able to open my jaw one finger width. I am also struggling with chewing and swallowing and my left side of my tongue feels a bit numb. Did you have any of these issues after your surgery? Thanks!!
Hi Sonja,
I am so sorry you are experiencing this! I only had some swallowing pain immediately after the surgery but none of the symptoms you are experiencing. What is your doctor saying? Did they do both sides? I hope you get better soon! Sending healing thoughts!!
Hana
Thanks Hana! I haven’t called my doctor yet because he said it could take about a month for me to feel back to normal, but he didn’t mention my jaw not being able to open. They did tell me swallowing may take time to relearn. I may call them tomorrow to see what they say. I wasn’t expecting these symptoms.
Hi pinkeagle,
You’re still extremely early in recovery. Internal swelling after ES surgery can cause nerves in that area to get irritated. The fact that you have symptoms you didn’t experience before surgery is quite possibly due to the post op swelling. Inflammation is your body’s way of protecting an injured area from further injury as it heals. Unfortunately, inflammation itself can create its own subset of problems depending on where it occurs. The area where the styloids & s-h ligaments “live” is very small & even a minor amount of inflammation there could leave you with the symptoms you’re currently experiencing.
The right side of my tongue was paralyzed for several months after my first ES surgery, my jaw was also stiff (but not as bad as yours), & I had trouble eating & swallowing. It took about 2 months for these things to subside. My tongue paralysis took closer to 9 months to really improve. I’m 3 years post op now & am about 95% of normal which is great in my book!
I encourage you to be patient w/ your body as it does what it’s designed to do - HEAL. Rest when it says rest & gradually move back into your normal routine over the next couple of months. It’s easy to overdo on days when you feel good & set your healing back a bit.
Hoping you feel much better very soon!
Thank you Isaiah_40_31! What you said makes a lot of sense. I was just started by to get concerned about my jaw being that the doctor didn’t mention that it would be a problem. I did leave the office a message yesterday and should get a call back within 48 hours. I think that I was so looking forward to the surgery relieving my Eagle’s symptoms that I failed to have a realistic picture of the recovery. I’m praying a lot and hoping that at the very least it is all normal post op stuff. It’s frustrating not being able to open my mouth wide enough to brush my teeth properly and being nervous while swallowing. I may need to just be more patient like you said. I’m so thankful that I found this group to get advice from people who’ve been through the same situations! 
pinkeagle, I’ll be praying for you as well. 