I had styloidectomy in september 2024. It was successful when it comes to pain caused by the styloid process.
The surgeon cut the stylohyoid ligament right below the styloid process, to be able to take out the bone.
The ligament had a clearly calcified part about 1,5 cm below the process. (And also, the ligament was starting to get calcified between the calcified part and the process, it was discovered through measuring the ligament’s density on a CT scan).
Now the ligament has migrated downwards, towards the hyoid bone, and the calcified part is located inside the angle of the jaw, pushing on an artery. I also have big problems with muscle spasms in that area, digastric and more muscles.
Both the bony piece and the muscle spasms cause vascular problems and pain.
Has anyone been through the same? And does anyone know how to address this, is surgery or hydrodissection recommended?
I’m sorry that you’re now in pain after your styloidectomy, that’s really rough…
It does sound like you would need a revision surgery to remove all the calcified sections of ligament- we have had some members who have had similar experiences when not all the calcifications are removed, then these can still irritate nerves or blood vessels… My personal (not medical!) opinion is that the hydrodissection could only be a temporary solution, if it helps at all, the calcifications really need to be removed. Would your surgeon do this , or are you able to get another opinion? We do suggest that members ask about getting all calcifications removed with surgery, but unfortunately some doctors don’t understand that even small sections of calcification can still cause symptoms.
I hope that you are able to get some treatment
I haven’t found any that specifically mention this, we have anecdotal evidence from members , and Eagles Syndrome is stated that elongated styloid processes or calcified stylo-hyoid ligaments can cause this- it stands to reason that any calcification in the neck can cause pain etc in such a tight space, when there are many nerves and blood vessels…
I did some searching on the internet to see if there were any research papers specifically addressing calcified ligament pieces causing pain when left in during surgery & found nothing. I think my search was too specific. I don’t recall that particular problem being discussed in any of the research papers linked on our forum, but there are so many at this point, I don’t remember the smaller details in them.
As @Jules said, there is anecdotal evidence from surgical & pre-surgical experiences of some of our members.
