@theFury - Based on the pics you just posted, it looks like your styloids could also be making contact w/ your internal carotid arteries in certain head positions, though I don’t recall that you’re having any carotid symptoms which is pretty miraculous.
I agree w/ @Jules that the greater horns of your hyoid look long, too, but perhaps once your styloids are gone, your head position/cervical posture will change, moving your cervical spine away from those so they aren’t problematic.
I would email the dentist & doctor who told you everything is normal & send them some of your 3D images simply for their education. It’s simply unbelievable they thought you imaging looked normal!!!
Would tachycardia be one of those symptoms? I have this when I turn my head left and right and if I get up quickly and do something then I feel my heart rate is very quick. What was interesting was that when I had the allergic reaction to the scan they put me on a monitor. When I rubbed my neck my heart rate increased massively.
I was 80bpm then I had adrenaline. When it was stabilising it settled again between 80/90 BPM but when I rubbed or massaged the back of my neck it was nearly 180 BPM
I have sent everything to both my dentist and orthodontist who took opgs around the same time. I’m trying to get the scan Mr Cousins took as they were huge and in your face. Also I have requested the CT scan of my sinuses from the NHS
Rubbing the back of your neck & getting a significant heart rate increase might be more related to your vagus nerve. Your carotid is more accessible on the front of your neck, but your vagus nerve exits the skull side by side w/ the IJV so might be more accessible to stimulation or irritation from the back side. I can’t say for sure though.
The symptoms of carotid irritation can be similar to vagus nerve irritation as @Isaiah_40_31 says, but also fainting or feeling faint when your head is in a certain position is common with carotid compression.
What an amazing story and those scans showing your styloids are amazing. Im not surprised dentist and ortho missed this but generally an ortho would do a panoramic these days but they often don’t go down the neck very far to get the full picture. This is the problem with our silo of specialties - they don’t look outside the box. Its odd the teeth would shift so far to the right. The first thing that popped into my mind as I started reading was does this person have hEDS? (hypermobile ehlers danlos) Why are their teeth shifting so much? Ive seen this in myself and in my daughter with orthodontics. Ive had a TMJ doctor ruin my bite with an appliance. She had 2 sets of braces and had to have rods put in to hold them after removing the braces.
Although the vascular compression can cause alot of your symptoms (dizziness, vertigo, vision loss), you may want to have them check your heart rate and BMP for POTS. Tell take sign is a rise of 30 beats per minute upon standing from sitting/prone position within 10 minutes. This can be done easily by your PCP. It would be good to document this before and after surgery to measure how much the decompression impacts your heart palpitations.
You really have jumped on this quickly and got to the right doctor in a short amount of time compared to many who take years to get an expert consult. Once I was pointed in the right direction (my neurologist suggesting possible ES), I knew where to start looking. Until you hear the words Eagles Syndrome, we are lost. Hats off to you for being so diligent and resourceful. You are in the right hands.
That’s about $12K USD which is quite the bargain price considering some doctors in this country are charging $35K+/side. It would be great if you could afford it so you could have your surgery sooner, @theFury.
Thank you for contacting Apollo Hospitals HCF, India. We are in receipt of your email query. I have taken the initial opinion from the doctor and, as per the images shared, the 3D CT appears to show a significant craniovertebral/cervico-mandibular bony abnormality with elongated styloid/stylohyoid complex and abnormal upper cervical anatomy, so the case needs detailed review by a skull base / maxillofacial / spine team before confirming the exact surgical plan.
The likely treatment, if symptoms correlate, may involve operative correction such as styloidectomy with or without additional craniovertebral stabilization/decompression depending on the full CT/MRI findings; for India stay, please keep about 14 days, with around 4 days in hospital. The treatment cost is USD 4,500 - 6,500, but the final plan and cost can only be confirmed after complete reports, symptoms, and treating specialist review.
We request you to kindly let us know if you would like to have this treatment at Apollo Hospitals, and we will then guide you on the next steps.
Warm regards,
International Patient Care Team
Apollo Hospitals HCF
Interesting that you found a hospital in India that does ES surgeries & even those for vES! We’ve had a number of members from India & haven’t had great medical resources to offer them. Where did you learn about Apollo Hospital in Delhi?
Since you didn’t post any images that show your skull/spine from the backside, I can’t comment about the upper cervical abnormal anatomy mentioned in the notes above. We were pretty focused on your styloids & IJVs in the imaging you did post. Can you put up a picture of your skull & spine from the back?
The cost for the surgery in Delhi is quite low! Do you know if the quoted price is for a bilateral surgery or only unilateral? The travel & lodging costs would certainly add some to the surgical cost, but overall it might still be less than surgery in the UK. Do you have relatives in the Delhi area you could stay with?
One thing to bear in mind though if you have surgery is if there were any complications, what would happen? You could end up with escalating costs then, and it would be worth checking beforehand if you were to have complications once you return, would you be able to get NHS treatment if you’ve been abroad for surgery…it looks as if possibly not: Going abroad for medical treatment - NHS
Some members have found costs with Dr Aghayev are reasonable, I would be quite wary of going to one of these other hospitals unless you can find out more info from patients.
@theFury - AWSOME that you have a surgery date that isn’t too far away! I’m so glad Mr. Axon is going to do your surgery & really hope it makes a huge difference in how you feel. I’ve put the date on my calendar & will pray for you that day in particular.
Thank you for the financial information as that will be very helpful for other members looking into self-pay so they don’t have to wait a year+ for surgery. I’m glad you’ve been able to work out a payment plan. Good to know about Chrysalis Finance, & amazing that the loan is interest free!!
I’m sorry that you’re having to pay for the surgery, but the cost does sound less than I was expecting…
Enough though I’m glad that you don’t have to wait too long, & will join @Isaiah_40_31 in praying for you
I’m glad that you don’t have to wait too long, & will join