[Annie S. Dubuisson, MD
Department of Neurosurgery, CHU Liege, Belgium
(Dr. Dubuisson was a peripheral nerve fellow at LSUMC)

Abstract:
Thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) is due to compression/irritation of brachial plexus (BP) elements ("neurogenic TOS") and/or subclavian vessels ("vascular TOS") in their passage from the cervical area toward the axilla. The usual site of entrapment is the interscalenic triangle. TOS is a source of disagreement among clinicians regarding its incidence, diagnostic criteria and optimal treatment. Constitutional factors, like a cervical rib, predispose to the development of TOS. The syndrome often develops during the 3rd or 4th decade, following external factors such as trauma, weight excess, incorrect shoulder posture.

The clinical picture can be varied: pain in the cervical region and arm, paresthesias (medial side of arm predilected) aggravated by overhead positions of the arms, hand intrinsic muscle deficit/atrophy, easy fatiguability, paleness, coldness of hand.]

more-
http://www.medschool.lsuhsc.edu/Neur...enter/TOS.html

Thank you Jo - i think we should either bump these articles/threads or consolidate them and sticky them at the top - lotsa good info here.
I particularly liked this:
"PAIN....You have taken me on a deep, unspeakable journey.
You have tossed me into raging, dark waters.
Unable to get my bearings, frantically searching for which way was up,
grasping wildly for what used to be my life....
it was easy to become lost in you.

You have forced me to come to terms with Great Spirit.
You have made me small.
You made me bargain with God....
you have made me beg for my life.

You have given me the taste of fear beyond any that I had ever known. And then, you have taken me to the doorway to death and showed me that there is really nothing to fear...
you melted and meant nothing.

I am navigating the raging waters of pain, moving from the darkness I call "the place beyond words"... back into the light.
Recently, I have been at a zero pain level for weeks at a time.
I am going to zero, all of the time.

It has been hard to find patients to relate to,
or physicians who weren't afraid to try.
Cloistered and frightened, my insights into my healing
are the result of years of not giving up.

These insights are what I have been asked to share. My blessings go to each one of you... however you have been touched by pain in your life... wherever you are on your journey. "
http://www.nationalpainfoundation.or...ight_index.asp

Thank you for sharing the info.