I also had transaxillary approach and I can tell you what my surgon said when I asked him these questions...
Only a piece of my rib was removed and scalenes were detached but left in. He felt it wasn't necessary to do anything more invasive. It seems like it varies from doc to doc and depends on what is being affected by the TOS.
Personally I was happy with transax approach because no large muscles were cut which was a concern for me. I don't know if this will help but I found this an interesting read...
Advanced Therapy in Thoracic Surgery
The page I'm pasting describes exactly what happens during surgery and there is a lot of great info in the whole book though it is A LOT to read. Personally this kind of info helps me. I do know how you feel as I went into my surgery pretty much blind!
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Originally Posted by curby
Yep, surgery is in the future...the near future. Just hunting up some docs and trying to learn what is important to ask/know about surgery, approaches, etc. My son is so relieved to have a diagnosis, and so am I.
Wondering...you had transaxillary approach, right? Was your first rib removed completely to the sternum, or only partially? I am waiting for a call from his potential surgeon to ask some specific questions about the plan of attack. Apparently the details really matter to long term success, like having a complete rib removal, and having scalenes removed and not just cut? Am I understanding that right? Or is that just the theory of some docs (that those criteria are necessary to long term success, or maybe they are just applicable to n/tos?)...I feel like I have so much to learn and so little time...we are told not to dally too long or the situation will become complicated with a blood clot.
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