Our son- 18 year old- saw Dr. Annino today. He has surgery next Friday, March 17th to remove the left styloid (5.7cm). Dr. Annino said our son is the youngest patient he has seen for this procedure. We felt like he was knowledgeable and made us feel comfortable with moving forward with surgery. We are from Mississippi and will be in Boston until the end of March. Dr. Annino definitely was worth the travel! Thank you all for your help as we navigate this rare disease. Hoping our son feels better soon. Dr. Annino feels one at a time would be best for his case. It will be done thru the neck and he will have a drain for a day or so. Any advice appreciated. We will update as we go. He has suffered for about a year and a half and we feel blessed to have found out without having to go thru years of this, as many of you have. He was being examined by a TMJ specialist and they found it thru a 3D CT. Praying we can help others - as you all have helped us. Here are some pics …. I hope they load properly
@Pcrowe, I’m glad your appointment with Dr. Annino went well and that you were able to schedule the surgery so soon. I will pray for your son’s surgery and the resolution of his symptoms!
How amazing that your son’s surgery was scheduled so soon! His styloid is quite long! Thanks for sharing a picture. I’m really glad you found Dr. Annino to be helpful. We’ve heard really good things about him from forum members.
Be aware that your son may notice some symptoms are gone immediately but others may linger for some months or come & go over that time as the nerves heal. Recovery can be a bit of a rocky road, but our bodies are designed to thrive & survive so they are generally good healers. I expect a great outcome for your son because he is young. The most difficult thing will be to help him moderate his activities once he starts feeling better 
. It’s a good idea to take life on the slower side for 6-8 weeks post op at least.
You’ve read the info about sleeping w/ head elevation post op & icing several times throughout the day/night after surgery. Keeping on schedule w/ pain meds is also key to feeling better quicker. If pain meds are Rx, then a stool softener/laxative is an important daily addition to the meds regimen. If his pain/swelling are excessive in the first two weeks post op, a course of prednisone will be helpful.
Your son may notice the symptoms from his remaining elongated styloid flare up/get worse after the first one is removed. This is pretty common & is a motivator to go ahead w/ the second surgery even though having to go through the surgery twice isn’t fun.
So pleased that you felt comfortable with Dr Annino, and that your son has a surgery date soon! @Isaiah_40_31 has given you info about surgery, there is some updated info about what to get ready etc in the Newbies Guide Section, here’s a link:
ES Information- Treatment: Surgery - Welcome / Newbies Guide to Eagle Syndrome - Living with Eagle
I would just day that recovery from surgery does vary quite a bit as doctors use different techniques, but prepare your son for the drain being pretty uncomfortable! I had a drain in & I think that was the worst bit of the surgery- it made it had to sleep & wasn’t pleasant having it removed the next day- but worth it to get symptoms gone!
Will be praying for a good outcome for him 