Hi there. I’ve been lurking for a while and want to get your opinion because ES seems to have an array of symptoms.
My symptoms are extremely painful, sharp, electric, pulsating, stabbing pain on my left vocal chord. The symptoms come for a couple of months then subside for a while. Sometimes it results in uncontrollable coughing fits. Sometimes talking or even touching my vocal chord area will result in a minor attack for a few seconds. Sometimes i can’t lie on my left side or an attack will occur.
I’ve visited with 17 ENTs since 2018. None of them offered a firm diagnosis. One of them suggested trimming my hyoid bone. I had the surgery and it did not relieve the symptoms.
I went to a neurologist recently and he diagnosed eagle syndrome within 5 minutes. Is that really what it is?
I’ve had multiple MRIs and CT scans since 2018. All normal but no one was looking for ES.
I’ve done the numbing shots in the area of my vocal cords multiple times and that didn’t work. I’m hoping the new ENT will be willing to inject into my styloid process area and see if that suggests another surgery may help.
Hi @JimFromAlabama I am definitely no expert, but based on those symptoms, Eagle sure seems like a very real possibility to me. And honestly, having a neurologist actually say “Eagle Syndrome” within 5 minutes feels like a major feat in itself, most of us had to practically drag the words into the room.
I’m not sure that you can fully rule ES in or out based only on whether an injection works, especially depending on exactly where it is placed, but @Jules and @Isaiah_40_31 will have much better knowledge on that part.
Given that no one was specifically looking for ES on your prior scans, it may be worth having your CTs reviewed by someone familiar with Eagle, maybe one of the surgeons mentioned on the forum that offer consults specifically for ES.
Your symptoms definitely sound like they belong in the “worth seriously investigating” category.
These symptoms strongly point to vagus nerve irritation or damage. Painful, sharp, electric, pulsating, stabbing type pains are how unhappy nerves make themselves known. Tingling, numbness, & a sense of pressure when nothing is pressing, can also be manifestations of nerve irritation/damage.
It’s well known on this forum that nerve pain/symptoms can come & go w/o explanation. With ES, sometimes particular head positions or activities are noted to trigger symptoms whereas other times there seems to be no particular cause. Symptoms can go away for weeks at a time then return w/ a vengeance, & often w/ additional new symptoms, then disappear again for a while. We don’t know why this happens, just that it does.
Nerves don’t show up in imaging except for FIESTA or CISS MRIs which can be difficult to obtain & expensive & don’t always provide conclusive results. The vagus is the largest & most extensive of our 12 cranial nerves. It affects quite a number of the body’s functions from swallowing, vocalizing, heart rate, blood pressure, anxiety/depression, body temperature, breathing, gastrointestinal function & even down to bowel, bladder & sexual function. It’s one of the cranial nerves most often irritated by elongated styloids & symptoms vary from person to person. I predominantly had heart rate & blood pressure issues w/ a little intermittent “vocal fry” added in, but we’ve had a number of members who’ve had vocal issues & coughs as their main symptoms.
Based on your symptoms & the fact the hyoid bone resection didn’t help, I think ES is highly suspect in your case. Here’s a post by a member who had good recovery from her vagus nerve symptoms after her styloidectomies: Successful Surgery for severe Vagus Nerve Compression - #15 by GrnyAny
I agree with @MGORNEAU and @Isaiah_40_31 that your symptoms could well be from ES, and also that the steroid injections whilst they can sometimes help, aren’t conclusive of an ES diagnosis, as many members had these without it alleviating their symptoms at all. If you have copies of your CT images, you’re welcome to upload them here & we can have a look and see as well? We’re not doctors but have seen plenty of CTs, often where radiologists have missed the obvious!
