Umm, I would want them to be very sure it would be a positive thing to do before agreeing to another surgery - do they have access to any special 3D MRI /MRA??? {or they may even have 4D}

I would try to get one of those special MRIs supposedly they can show much more detail.

Did they mention scar tissue?
Some bodies seem to produce an excess of it and it will cause extra problems too.
But you shouldn't have that yet but it comes into play later, or perhaps you had some before the surgery, and that was why he said it was worse that they thought inside?

I've been on the TOS forums since 04 and I have never heard of anyone getting the second rib out also.

If anyone has heard of that please post it here with what you recall about it.

This isn't the time for a surgeon to be guessing at what might work.

You mentioned some of the chest muscle removed - was that the pec minor? armpit area?
pec minor syndrome - also perhaps?

I don't know if you have had time to scan the sticky threads up above?
look for threads near the top of the list with the green arrow icons.
we have saved polls, websites, videos, pub med articles...

Thinking of you

4D MRI in UK-
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&c...=&oq=&gs_rfai=
3D MRI in UK -
http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&c...=&oq=&gs_rfai=

3D & 4D MRI info-
http://www.rsirescue.com/articles/collins.htm
http://tosinfo.com/

[Pectoralis minor surgery: In 2005 we became acquainted with the pectoralis minor syndrome, a condition that was described 60 years ago but which most of us had ignored (described above under "cause" and "diagnosis"). Each patient we now see for TOS is also examined for this. We have been surprised to find that over 75% of the people who have TOS also have complaints and positive physical exam findings of pectoralis minor syndrome. If following a pectoralis minor muscle block there is significant improvement within a few minutes, we have been performing a very simple operation called pectoralis minor tenotomy. This operation is performed as an outpatient under local anesthesia, but with an anesthesiologist in attendance so that patients are asleep for a short time but are awake within a few minutes of the end of the operation. The procedure carries almost no risk of injury.

Between 2005 and 2007, 300 operations were performed that included the pectoralis minor muscle. Half of these were pectoralis minor operations alone; the other half combined pectoralis minor release with thoracic outlet operations.

Deciding who has thoracic outlet syndrome and who has pectoralis minor syndrome is determined by history, physical exam, and muscle blocks. Patients who are diagnosed with pectoralis minor syndrome alone are offered pectoralis minor release as the only operation. Those who are diagnosed with both conditions, and who note significant improvement following pectoralis minor block, are offered the simple operation of pectoralis minor tenotomy with the understanding that if they do not experience good relief of their symptoms they can return for the bigger operation of scalenectomy or first rib resection. To date, 14 of the first 48 patients with both TOS and pectoralis minor syndrome woe received pectoralis minor tenotomies alone have returned and received scalenectomies, some with first rib resection but most without rib resection.

In another group of patients, who have predominately TOS, but also have pectoralis minor syndrome, surgery has consisted of both TOS and pectoralis minor operations. By combining the two operations under the same anesthetic it has been possible to improve the success rate for surgery. ]
http://www.ecentral.com/members/rsanders/