I agree with what Kelly said. While I think that some excellent suggestions have been made, it is VERY important not to jump to any conclusions here.

TOS is not a diagnosis I would wish on anyone. No medical diagnosis has,in fact, been made - when I read the poster's story (I am going to call her "M" here) the sx did not add up. They still don't.

M and I have exchanged a couple of emails about this. I won't say anything here that I wouldn't say directly to her (I think you guys know that about me anyway, at least I hope that you do).

The right chiro could be a valued part of the tx team, for sure. But with respect, I think the big guns need to be called in at the same time - something is wrong here, causing M acute pain - to me it sounds like more than one issue, but I am no doc.

We all know the drill, there is whole process for ruling out a host of other disorders before a determination can be made as to what is truly going on. That is why it is so important to find an excellent diagnostician.

Starting with a neurologist makes sense b/c the numbness and tingling, I think, are nerve sx. (And yes, I know that is a TOS-like sx but it could also be caused by several other things, including cervical syndrome.) Word of caution: I had an excellent neurologist for many years, but he belongs to one of those practices who subscribe to the "there is no such thing as TOS" school of thought! So it pays to find out beforehand whether the practice treats neurovascular entrapment vascular disorders including TOS (even though M is hopefully going to be able to rule this beast out in her case). Same thing with finding a PT - can't emphasize enough the need to find one who knows how to treat TOS if in fact that does end up to be the dx.

But let's not get ahead of ourselves! Last time I looked, alcoholism was the only disease in the world that was self=diagnosed. (kidding, I'm kidding...sorta)

I am not trying to embarrass anyone here, but this is a serious thing. It is important to keep an open mind. A PCP who says they don't know where to send you when you tell them you are in excruciating pain, or who leaves on vacation for weeks while you're left wondering whether your dx is terminal? Hmmm, I might have to rethink that one, I don't know. But I also know from personal experience, being in a high level of pain 24/7 can make one very emotional - does nothing for my decision-making ability (or for my disposition). The kindness of strangers can be all you have to hang onto sometimes, and all that's pointing you in the direction of clarity.

Baby steps. Pain, when it comes on you all of a sudden like that, is your body's way of telling you something is seriously amiss. There are plenty of stories among us of being overlooked, misdiagnosed, undertreated for years before our TOS was properly diagnosed. I think we sometimes lose sight of the fact that the opposite can also occur. TOS can MIMIC so many darned other pain syndromes, that it can play these tricks on you.

So it's really important to be careful and get the proper testing. The good news is, M has found us and I do think we can help her through this. Hopefully, she will find the right treating professionals and they will be able to get at the SOURCE(s) of her pain, treat it aggressively within that 3-month window so that whatever the cause, it will not become a chronic pain issue.

My 2 cents on the blood clot Q: you only need to worry about clots if you have veinous compression; with arterial compression the issue would be aneurisms; and with nerve compression the risk is nerve damage. In all cases, though I believe the compression has to be pretty bad to be of major concern or to do severe damage. I'm sure the location of the compression is also a key factor.

For what it's worth, M - I don't think you're in any immediate danger arm-wise, but you might want to start writing down your sx in a sort of "pain journal" - a good neurologist will be able to glean all sorts of information from the details you provide - you'll be amazed!

Good luck to you and stay in touch with us please, OK?

Night, all - Alison