I had my right styloidectomy (without decompression) performed by Dr Osborne last August and thought I would share my experience in case it helps anyone decide.
The surgery was a success. The neck pain, difficulty swallowing, foreign body sensation I had on the right side disappeared instantly. There wasn’t a single nerve damage complication that occurred. The only issues that I had after the operation was throat pain due to the anesthesia tube, and a bit more oozing than I expected from my incision site. I didn’t even need the pain killer that was prescribed. Dr Osborne took very good care of the incision after the surgery and frequently called me into the office to make sure everything was healing properly, which it eventually did.
He seems to be doing a lot of eagle syndrome surgeries. Just in the short time I was there I noticed 2-3 other people coming in to have their post-surgery checkups.
Unfortunately, my insurance wasn’t willing to cover most of the costs so I ended up paying the majority. Something to keep in mind if you are considering a surgery with him.
Overall, though, I was very satisfied with the process and would recommend him.
Thank you very much for coming back after so long to give us an update, @zakyr. Much appreciated. I’m very pleased to learn that your outcome has been so good from the surgery Dr. Osborne did for you. We are aware here that he doesn’t take very many, if any, types of medical insurance & the financial outlay to see him can make it unaffordable for some patients. We’ve had a few who’ve been able to get their insurance companies to kick in a bit like yours did. I guess every little bit helps!
Again, your comments & review of your surgery & post op care are much appreciated!
I’m glad that the surgery was successful for you- we have had quite a few members who have had surgery with him recently & have had good results…I’m sure more would opt for surgery with him if it wasn’t for the cost!
Have a good Christmas & hopefully a healthy 2026!
Glad you’re doing well! The biggest reason I didn’t go with him is my case requires a surgeon who specializes in IJV decompression, which he does not. I came to learn Dr. Osborne only performs the styloidectomy but will not offer C1 shaving or any other form of vein decompression. But if I simply needed the styloid removed, I think he would have been a great choice.
My only other reservation was learning he cuts the greater auricular nerve, seeing it as the cost of doing business, and patients will have a numb earlobe as a result. Whereas, other surgeons either leave that nerve alone, or cut it and repair it using micro sutures for increased odds of recovery. That said, I think I may have come to accept this — again, had I not needed decompression.
I question whether Dr. Osborne does skull base removal in every case because I’ve seen post op imaging from one of his patients where there was a 1 cm stump left behind. Since he’s excellent about operating case to case, he may not go totally to the skull base if it is too risky for nerves or isn’t necessary for vascular decompression.
Thanks for that info @MGORNEAU , I imagine that for all the doctors they can’t always go fully to the skull base if it risks nerves, which is why they monitor nerves… great that he was able to remove yours that far & stopped the compression, it’s helpful for members to know who have VES!
Mine wasn’t removed up to the skull base. He went past the styloid/C1 choke point, but there is still a small stump which doesn’t seem to be causing problems.
I can see what you mean about your compression being close to your skull base, @MGORNEAU. Agreed that it’s good Dr. O was able to remove your styloid at its origin.
