I saw Dr. Roy Fujitani at UC Irvine today. He was very knowledgeable regarding TOS and knew of all the other vascular guys in my area. He was specifically highly complimentary of Dr. Gelabert. Fujitani is definitely a good option if you are in Orange County.

I feel very confident in both Fujitani and Gelabert, however I am not comfortable having surgery in the UC system. The UC system is so slow moving and impersonal for my taste. Tests and follow up appointments are scheduled weeks out and sometimes it is over a week before they even call you with the follow up appointment. I don't any more extra time to navigate the UC system as my employment FMLA clock is now ticking. Also. medical residents are "learning" on you constantly and I fear that they will also be "assisting" in surgery.

I actually had a nice long conversation with Dr. Ahn. He called me after I cancelled my angiogram/angioplasty. I am still very impressed with his technical approach and evolution. He is obviously trying to be a trailblazer and I think he may be on to something. Only time will tell if his peers accept and validate the balloon angioplasty as a more effective diagnostic. I just felt more like a test subject than a patient, and I believe I made that clear to him (I think many surgeons operate like this).

I am moving forward with Dr. Niren Angle. Dr. Angle and Dr. Gelabert were by far my favorites in terms of taking a detailed history but most importantly compassion. Dr. Angle went above and beyond taking genuine interest in my pain management and taking time to make sure he was answering every question to my satisfaction. My engineering background makes me very detail oriented and he was willing to go as deep as I desired regarding his surgical procedures. His confidence and encouragement has truly uplifted me.

Dr. Angle has ordered an MRA/MRV at my request just for my own peace of mind. My MRI in 2010 was without contrast, only in the neutral position, and a 1.5 Tesla. We'll see if a 3T scan with contrast yields any new information.