With juggular compression, how does one get diagnosed before getting diagnosed. To see specialist it has to be shown there is a problem. To show there is a problem the radiologist or doc would have to know or care beyond looking at arteries. What triggers the “aha it might be veins, let’s get you referred” if the doc either refuses because radiology reports said nothing 3xcept all arteries were clear and no significant stenosis in them. No mention of veins in head or neck. How does one get prediagnoaed in order to get diagnosed. We asked repeatedly if all blood vessels clear and were reassured. If they never look at all blood vessels than one is in black hole. Surely there must be some professional beyond the primary and local ER that one could see and properly tested but is not yet the 4 or 5 neurosurgeons that operate. What professional would that be? And what test? (And please it is best not to say neurologists. They just tap a few things and that is it). Like something is broken in the system.
You need to see a vascular doctor or vascular surgeon. They will do a venogram & blood flow test w/ ultrasound to see the level of blood flow through your jugular vein. Since you already know you have jugular compression because it has shown up on a scan, your PCP should be willing to refer you to a vascular specialist or directly to an ENT such as Dr. Hackman since it is also clear from your imaging that your styloid process is part of the problem & its removal would help your jugular vein recover.
I first saw an ENT who specializes in head and neck surgery, had a cat scan that showed long styloid and calcified ligament, he referred me to a vascular center that does vascular ultrasounds to check blood flow in my neck. That showed my blood was rushing faster than it should through mt neck indicating compression. After that he sent me to an interventional neuroradiologist who did a venogram and cerebral angiogram to test the pressures in my veins in my head and neck and take pictures of my veins with dye in them. Even then, there was not a conclusive answer that my jugular was blocked because sometimes it can depend on the position of your head and neck. Angiograms are a pretty invasive test and more like a small surgery so I’d try to start with a vascular doctor who does ultrasounds or ENT from the list here.
Thank you blossom. I appreciate that. My problem is that the styoid is not that long. But you can see the 1 jugular is pinched to 1 mm. But no one noticed. The other jugular I cannot find and where it should be the styloid is up against c1… I will see what I ca do. i appreciate the information.
I had a similar experience, and had to push the radiology department to re-read the scan several times before they got it right. I taught myself to use 3D Slicer after reading about the program on this site, identified my issues with a 3-D rendering, and sent copies of the images with my styloids circled to the radiologist. The styloids don’t have to be really long to cause problems. You will be able to see your styloids and some blood vessels on a CT scan. If you can see vascular involvement, advocate for yourself and push the radiologist to write an accurate report.