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Old 03-08-2011, 01:44 PM
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josepentia josepentia is offline
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Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 57
10 yr Member
josepentia josepentia is offline
Junior Member
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Join Date: Mar 2011
Posts: 57
10 yr Member
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Thanks for the replies and warm welcome!!
To answer the questions:
Yes, the veins/arteries do seem engorged at the same time that my arm/hand become a deep/maroon red and swells slightly. I say slightly, bc I wear a size 5.5 wedding ring and have a small wrist watch- but I have to take each off when my arm/hand is very symptomatic multiple times in a row. I do not have Raynaud's phenomenon, or RSD as I have lived in the SW for nearly ten years now- extreme hot temps and mild low temps- along with the fact that the color isn't blotchy, mottled or affected by stress. I would take that DX, any day tho, over TOS!! My arm/hand turns a deep red mostly when my arm is by my side while standing. However, I am noticing more and more that recently (past 3 mos) that my arm/hand will change to this color while sitting on a chair, on the couch and laying in bed.
I'm not sure how this could have developed- I do know that I noticed symptoms for the very first time when I was taking a driving test for my motorcycle license in 07. My ring and pinky finger on the left hand seemed numb- but not tingling. That afternoon my arm was aching badly. Symptoms went away by bedtime and I sort of blew it off, I guess you could say. I had a move and new house to worry about- sad to say that my numb fingers were at the bottom of my worry list. Later in the year and beginning of 08- the symptoms happened (numb fingers, dead arm feeling, tightness of the arm or touriquet feeling AND color change) became more frequent to 2-3 even 4 times a week. Thats when I began seeing a dr. I had a full neuro workup- neg for any findings. I passed the EMG/ncs with flying colors. Remember- now we are at every single day, mult times a day with symptoms. grrrr. When I was younger, I had many adventure accidents- fell out of trees, off the roof, hit with a car (low speed, but I fell and had soreness and scrapes.) I had one rearend MVA with neg injuries (sore, stiff neck. I was the driver, think where my seatbelt is.) and I was a passanger in another MVA in 02 that destroyed the car- driver lost control of car at approx 70 MPH and we slammed the drivers side of car into retaining wall, wrapping front nose of car around edge of retaining wall. The drivers seatbelt was severed and she sad half in my lap and half on the center consol. She was worse off than I (tho not too bad considering) and I suffered all superficial injuries on my left side- scrapes, hit my head on left side, left side soreness, and neck of course sore as well. If I would pin point anything at all, it would be this accident, the rear-end accident or my falling down the stairs all the time.
I have attended a very good PT program for a total of ten months with a TOS diagnosis- with no evail. Pt helped to strengthen where it needed to, but ultimately worsened my arm/hands' symptoms!!

I do have the white hands when raising hands in the various TOS testing positions, loss of sensations, feels like temp change and so on. Thank you Pixified for suggesting that I have a venous doppler test completed. When I have my apnt tomorrow, I will ask the vascular DR for this. I do feel that although my symptoms are much worse on the left side, I feel that because my right arm/hand is becoming symptomatic, that BOTH sides need to be looked at- if only to determine status and baseline of where I am in right now. What if there is damage? This is a concern for me. When you have had this venous doppler completed- did they move your arm(s) around in different positions? I would hope they would do this.

Are there any other tests that are worth the while to determine the extent of damage to veins/arteries, or to at least see how badly the blood flow is restricted and how (inbound blood or out going blood)???

Appreciate it folks!! Really helps me to feel most comfortable about this condition. BTW- it seems (after trolling this board-) that not too many ppl have vascular TOS- is this really correct??

Thanks again,
Jocelyn
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