I posted before that I was diagnosed with ES by my chiropractor and dentist.
My family doctor has been helpful and ordered a CTA/CTV with contrast, along with a referral to Dr.Pereira at St.Michael’s Hospital.
However, I have just got confirmation that my CT won’t be until March 2027, because my doctor sent the referral for the CT to St.Michael’s so that it’s easier for Dr.Pereira to access the results. According to the Ontario Health website which shows wait times, it seems that St.Michael’s may have a longer wait time than other hospitals.
I have just messaged my family doctor asking if I can be referred to a different hospital for the CT, so I don’t have to wait so long. Did anyone get a CT really quickly? If so which hospital?
I was actually at ER a couple of days ago as I stumbled out of bed due to dizziness and couldn’t walk straight for a few minutes. I also felt something digging into the side of my neck. They did ECG and blood work, but no imaging. The ER doc said it’s vertigo from my ear, because he did an assessment to rule out brain related vertigo (finger to nose, flipping the palm of my hand on the other hand quickly, walking in a straight line etc). I did explain I have ES which he had heard of, but he didn’t think any of my veins are compressed. So much for the 5hr wait !!! Any tips to convince an ER doc to do a CT scan?
Tom,
Dr Pereira has a 9-10 months wait time for the balloon testing cerebral angiogram for the veins and arteries. I am seeing him in Feb-March. In the meantime, have your family doctor order a regular CT head and neck scan with and without contrast dye with a styloid process area protocol of both sides. It is important to have radiologist convert some of the images from 2D( which is standard CT imaging to 3D imaging. The Radiant Viewer program the radiologist uses does this. This way, non-doctors like us can read the images. With those images, you could determine the jugular vein compression without even doing the cerebral angiogram. Then someone like my neurosurgeon Dr Aghayev in Istanbul can easily read them and give you a solution at no charge. He’ll send you a video of his findings through What’s App. Most doctors don’t know what to look for.
I use https://www.pocket.health/en-US/login to store my medical records and email doctors for them to view, You shouldn’t have to wait that long for a regular CT. You call around smaller town hospital that have a CT scanner for better wait times. Where do you live?
@JPM I didn’t realize Dr.Pereira’s wait time is that long. I’m in Toronto. I hadn’t thought about smaller cities or smaller hospitals, but I’ll look into it. Thanks for that idea.
@JPM I just found a hospital in Richmond Hill that has a short wait time (36 days even for non-urgent cases) for CT. I’ll ask to be referred there instead.
@JPM I just found a hospital in Richmond Hill that has a short wait time (36 days even for non-urgent cases) for CT. I’ll ask to be referred there instead.
Hi. I am also looking for someone to review my pocket health ct with contrast. I’m in Ottawa Canada and my ENT has not been helpful. Although he acknowledges my styloids are elongated (4.5 cm bilateral) he doesn’t believe that thickened and elongated styloids can contribute to my symptoms of bradycardia, breathlessness, choking feeling, pressure in my head, and migraine. Do I understand correctly that there is a doctor in Turkey that could review my images and provide a more informed opinion? Thanks for the clarification.
I live in London, Ont. I had cervical surgery C5-C7 along with bilateral Styloid process with C1 shave surgery in January 2026 in Istanbul, Turkey. Dr Kamran Aghayev is a neurosurgeon that performed all 3 surgeries in one 10 hr surgery. All went well. The neck surgery was somewhat painful but it’s all good now. Contact Bassam through What’s App. (Dr. A’s international contact that speaks English well. He went to school in Montreal and is also a doctor.) They will both read your CT and get back to you with a video of the findings. It’s $10,000 USD Cash per side which includes all hospital costs. No other surprises. You just pay for flight and accommodations. Food is cheap in Turkey. Ahmed is his driver for all appointments including airport pickup and leaving. They have it all figured out over there. It is safe in Istanbul. I was there 2 weeks and no problem. Tell Bassam you were speaking to JP or Mr. Jean from London Canada( The neck and styloid guy). Tell him I said Hi.
Hi. I am also looking for someone to review my pocket health ct with contrast. I’m in Ottawa Canada and my ENT has not been helpful. Although he acknowledges my styloids are elongated (4.5 cm bilateral) he doesn’t believe that thickened and elongated styloids can contribute to my symptoms of bradycardia, breathlessness, choking feeling, pressure in my head, and migraine. Do I understand correctly that there is a doctor in Turkey that could review my images and provide a more informed opinion? Thanks for the clarification.
If you want other opinions @Catcos , the US doctors who are very experienced with Vascular ES are Dr Costantino in NY, DrLui in NJ, Dr Cognetti in PA, Dr Hepworth in CO and Dr Nakaji in AZ. Dr Osborne in CA also reviews scans although he isn’t as experienced with VES, but he is happy to do consultations without expecting patients to have surgery.
So frustrating that your ENT won’t accept your styloids could be causing issues- it sounds like your vagus nerve could be compressed as well as possibly your IJV…
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