@Coco1 - If anyone can help you, Dr. Osborne can. He is very experienced w/ ES surgery. The only thing is, if he removes the styloid on the side where it’s very close to your C1 vertebra, & the IJV doesn’t open, he doesn’t do anything further so you might need a second surgery to have a bit shaved off your C1 vertebra to make more room for the IJV so it can open fully. It would be worth asking him if he feels cutting the styloid back is enough to allow your IJV to open up before you go all the way to Los Angeles for surgery.
1 Like
Oh good to know, thank you!!
1 Like
Thank you so much for taking the time to do that!!
1 Like
@Coco1 are you able to show me the axial view at the level of C1? I can check if your IJVs are getting compressed between your styloids and C1. I’ve attached my own imaging to help you locate C1. It’s the top vertebrae with wings and a white circle in the top middle!
none of mine have as pronounced of a white circle
@Coco1 see attached annotated image.
Your left styloid is really close to your C1. This poses a potential issue for your left IJV and left vagus nerve, since typically, the IJV and vagus nerve are between the styloid and C1. However, I don’t see your IJV there. Maybe this is because it doesn’t have contrast in it, or it’s because it’s further out to the side (where I labelled “left IJV?”). Nonetheless, the styloid should not be that snug against C1 because it risks irritating and/or compressing nerves.
On your right side, the styloid seems to be an o.k distance from your IJV. The IJV may have some compression against C1, but not sure if this is enough to cause problems.
I’m just noticing this as I write this, but the white glow in the bottom right of the image that hugs along the bottom of the C1 transverse process appears it could be a collateral vein. We typically develop these in response to IJV compression, so the blood can flow out of the brain. The fact that this is on the same side (i.e., your left side) as the styloid that is abnormally close to your C1, I suspect your left IJV is being compressed.
2 Likes
That is all incredibly helpful, thank you so so much! I really feel a lot better understanding what could be cause all these weird symptoms!
3 Likes