Hi,

tl;dr If you wish to skip my introduction, I do have a question: After surgery, do TOS folks with chronic myofacial pain and trigger points still continue to to get myofscial pain and trigger points after other TOS symptoms have resolved?

Introduction: I'm a 38 yo man, and have bilateral TOS due to an accessory medial scalene -- yep an extra scalene running in between the medial and the anterior scalene, between the subclavian artery and the vein. So I had the whole shebang: vascular, neurogenic, etc.

I had my left side decompression / scalenectomy done 10/26, and the right side on 12/1. I'm recovering well, and am happily just taking Motrin at the moment and doing mindfulness meditation for pain. Immediately after the surgery I could feel a difference in both arms -- I never knew I had lost so much sensation, or that I would get this much back!

I also can lift my arms without them throbbing and turning blue, so regardless of any pain that remains, it was totally worth it.

Before I see my doctor tomorrow, I'd like to know if people who had trigger points, spasms, and myofascial pain associated with their TOS got some relief from decompression. I'm relieved to think I won't get the scalene trigger points now, but I am getting the familiar back, back of head, tricep, etc trigger points.

Should I plan with my doctor and PT to continue treating this myofascial pain as ongoing for some time? I would assume that it takes time to resolve the constellation of chronic pain and disabilities that accompany TOS even after the decompression surgery has been successful.

Still, even with my evil levator muscle trigger point stabbing me in the back like an ice-pick, I feel sooooooooo much better overall.

I would like to know peoples' experiences with this, as I want to plan my time-off (and disability paperwork) to give me the time I need to do all of the things that are good for me (PT, yoga, acupuncture, paying with my dogs, exercise, stress reduction) and will reduce pain going forward.

I know that jumping back into stress and hectic life immediately is NOT the way to go, but of course, that's what my employer seems to expect. Regardless, I'd like to know what others have encountered in their journeys, and if I should keep planning for the long path...

Lorin