I too am very sorry for what you are going through. I saw all three Denver Doc's (who all reccomended surgery) before letting someone do the surgery. I was given the odds---the worst of which was a flat out--"You could die". I have had two surgeries. The first was removal of the first rib and anterior scalene. I had immediate improvement, unfortunately scar tissue took over and I needed a re-do a year later. I tried Botox before resorting to surgery again, but I got limited improvement from it. They then removed my middle scalene and a mess of scar tissue. My surgeon was worried about how my neck would appear minus both scalenes so he took a fat pad from somewhere else in my body and placed it over the area--and I have a pretty normal appearance. The second surgery was far more painful and didn't solve my problems, but did make some aspects better. I have been in physical therapy for over 3 years--and I refuse to give up hope of getting better. My surgeon told me that I will never be cured before he ever layed a scalpel on me. He has been nothing but honest.

I think that a lot of the problems we face are because TOS is not a well known condition and is comonly mis-diagnosed. I like many others hear have done abundant research on TOS. It saddens me that you and others here have to resort to lawsuits--whether it is for malpractice, workman's comp., auto accidents, or any other situation. I had my day in court--and I found out that there is nothing about "The truth-the whole truth-and nothing but the truth" that actually involves the truth. It's all about who can hire the best attorney--and live through the battle. Attorney's do not have to tell the truth in court--they are not under oath. Insurance companies can afford better attorneys than anyone, and they know how to play the game. They twist words--and in my case--flat out lie in court. The will do everything they can to make your life misserable. Jurys are not the kindest folks either. They are people that can base their verdict on whatever they want to as they do not have to follow the law. They are free to judge you by what you look like, how much money you have, what kind of house you live in, and by the way you laugh or cry. You think that you are suffering from what the doctors did to you--just wait. The stress is horrible--and stress is not good for TOS. Please ---make sure that you interview several lawyers before committing to one. Go through all of your past medical history and be prepared for them to twist it into a line of pre-existing conditions.

I appologize for this being so long--and I will climb down off of my soapbox now. I don't want to see anyone else get screwed by the system like I did.
I am not saying that all attorneys are bad either--so I appologize if I have offended any of the honest ones!