thorasic outlet syndrome

[pender45]

hey i have been having shoulder pain,tingleyness and nubness for the last two years during football and wrestling. i finally went to the doctor for it. they diagnosed me with thorasic outlet synrome. they told me that the only way to fix it is with surgery. i was wondering if anybody else has had this? is surgery my best option? how long is the recovery time? will i still be able to lift?(my biggest question!!) any info would be alot of help. thanks

[smalls]

Is your hand swollen?

There are many issues that lead to the symptoms you stated that are MUCH more common than TOS. I'm not saying that's not what you have, but even if you do there are other options other than surgery. Find a certified hand therapist (physical or occupational therapists with post graduate education specializing in the cervical spine distally to the hand) Get a good eval from a specialist. There are rarely no options other than surgery.

[pender45]

no my hand has never gotten swollen. neither has my shoulder. i am going to see a specialist next week and he will determine if i need surgery. the last doctor i went to said i had extra cervical ribs and that they would need to be removed berfore i can play sports again

[Bam Bam]

i was diagnosed with parsnage turners syndrome 7 yrs ago. Its an auto immune. Basically i had a stomach virus and my antibodies didnt stop at the virus and attacked my thorasic nerve killing it. I have some of the same symptoms, numbness ,tingly, deadness in tricep and winging scapula. Everytime i see a doctor or get a body comp i get a comment best one yet is man it looks like someone to a big icecream scoop out of your back.

[Titanium_Jim]

You have a rare condition that has chances of turning very nasty on you. An extra bone where there is not much room could possibly put undue stress on a big artery in the area, and/or the nerves (which it already has in your case) causing symptoms ranging from numbness to paresthesia to gangrene.
If I were you I would get the surgery. I have had a rib cut off, and I can tell you, the phantom rib pains and tiny spots of numbness you will have on your skin afterward is not nearly as bad as the symptoms you already experience and may end up experiencing.
As far as still lifting, I am not sure how taxing this particular surgery is, so the surgeon/specialist would have to tell you how long it would be before you can lift again. DO NOT lift before the doctor says it is alright, your body needs time to fully recover from surgery.

[joelhall]

this is not the only option you have available for treatment of thoracic outlet, however your doctor has examined you so is in the best place to comment at the moment. an examination by a neurologist is the best bet to discuss treatment options, many of which are non-invasive.

i would wait for this to ask about lifting for now.

[fpr]

last guy I met that had TOS ended up a bilateral upper extremity amputee

[pender45]

Well good news is i finally got my surgery! I was pretty excited when i finally got the news that they were willing to operate. My surgery was about a month ago and i've been recovering really fast. I started lifting again lart wek and i'm already feeling like my old self again. the only thing is that i didnt really do any of my phys. therapy so when i went to do my squat this mornin, i found i couldnt move my arm far enough to hold on to the squat bar, so i'll be doin alot of range of motion exercises.

[pender45]

last guy I met that had TOS ended up a bilateral upper extremity amputee

Damn that must suck