Yup congenital in nature. I have this as well! Incomplete fusion of the posterior arch of the atlas
So interesting! Do you have any known symptoms as a result?
Whatās interesting is they discovered it prior to my diagnosis. Itās apparently not super rare its a congenital defect thought to be totally benign. Turns out it might be part of the issue here.
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Can I ask what symptoms have resolved? Weāre your issues vascular? I have multiple consults setup including Hackman so Iām very interested to hear how it has helped you. Have you had follow up imaging?
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I actually plan on getting a follow up CT-Scan soon. Iām upset because I guess Dr. Hackman lost my images somehow 
not a big deal but I wanted to see them! Lots of resolved pain like foreign object feeling in throat, and mostly tinnitus gone, some has come back but only when Iām stretching or in an odd position.
When I was younger I used to have a lot of migraines, to the point that I saw a neurologist (however to be frank I hardly remember any of this due to c-ptsd) for my migraines but I have no clue what the outcome of that appointment was or if it went any further. I feel like I was on meds once for it but I truly canāt remember.
However after finishing high school the migraines went away and havenāt come back, but its possible that as the styloids were calcifying over time that they had a worse impact on me then. I certainly believe I had limited blood flow to my brain from the compression because after the styloids were removed I had this sort of brain fog that was lingering over me forever just disappear, it was like I could sense what was around me again. But of course everyone is different.
The icepick feeling in my throat is gone and that was one of the worst problems for me because I would be driving and have to turn my head to the left and I truly couldnāt some days because the pain was so real. I felt like I was being stabbed in the throat.
I also had really bad eye pain as well in the back corner of my eyes when I tried to look up in that direction, after the removal of the styloids this has almost completely improved.
Drastic improvement in cognitive functions as well.
Hope this helps some!
I do not believe that Hackman ābelievesā in vascular but I will say he is a great surgeon and UNC Cancer Hospital would be my pick again if I had to get another surgery. It takes a lot of scientific research for Doctor to ābelieveā in something and that seems to be part of the reason why he doesnāt like to comment that he believes in it. That tends to be the only issue with people picking him.
He lets you know up front about the possible side effects and possible complications after surgery, for me what happened was the left side of my tongue wasnāt working for awhile and It was hard to eat for a few months after surgery. But Surgery was in November and Iāve been fine for awhile now! 
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Thatās amazing Iām very happy for you! My radiologist is very well versed on this condition and itās symptoms. He believes I donāt need my c1 touched just need those styloids out, just need to be sure this is the one this time.
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My appointment with Hackman was today. Great doctor at the very least for bedside manner haha. He was very knowledgeable. Iāve been told he doesnāt believe in the vascular side of eagles and that is not what I gathered at all today from him.
He made it clear it DOES effect some people when the jugulars are pinched by the styloid, however he believes itās often a multi pronged issue which I agree with. He mentioned what we all know- he ties of jugulars for surgery, he sees people with massive styloids and only one functioning jugular and they had no idea anything was wrong. He said a lot of us have probably had this stenosis for a while but something secondary happens with your collaterals not being enough at some point. He didnāt say anything definitively he said it could be clots it could be anything, but he absolutely believes in the vascular nature of this condition.
He was extremely confident, he said the surgery is routine for him especially compared to the more complicated ones, he mentioned the risks but said heās never had any major issues and that all of his cases recovered any nerve function that was temporarily lost. We havenāt booked anything officially theyāll be calling soon, but I want to finish my set of blood thinners now then head out again in summer! Strongly recommend Dr Hackman at least for a consult
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That is great to hear. Did you discuss your calcified ligament removal? Did he discuss with your latest CT after the recent surgery? I mean it was obvious from the imaging you shared earlier that you had long calcified ligament. Does he want the Clot to resolve altogether before any considering any surgery? Just wondering what is the next steps for you?
He said the right side heās hoping itāll be just the ear incision to get the remains of the styloid. Heās not worried about the clot, my last scan showed massive improvement there and he said right after recovery I can get back on thinners to prevent anymore clotting.
Yeah he removes the entire ligament. Sometimes he can successfully release it full through the front of the ear. A lot of the time he goes through the neck to remove the rest though, which Iām happy heās very thorough. He also explicitly discussed removing any fibrotic tissue and build up around the vessel which I was happy to hear.
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So pleased that he can help & that you feel confident with him! Thanks for the info too 