Turkish Neurosurgery 2014 , Vol 24 , Num 6
Supraclavicular Surgical Approach for Thoracic Outlet Syndrome: 10 Years of Experience
Sedat DALBAYRAK1, Onur YAMAN2, Mesut YILMAZ3, Teyfik YILMAZ4
1Neurospinal Academy, Istanbul, Turkey
2Tepecik Education and Training Hospital, Clinic of Neurosurgery, Izmir, Turkey
3Neurospinal Academy, Istanbul, Turkey
4Dicle University, School of Medicine, Department of Neurosurgery, Diyarbakır, Turkey
DOI : 10.5137/1019-5149.JTN.9087-13.0 AIM: Symptoms of thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) may be vascular, neurological or combined symptoms involving both. Treatment of TOS is generally conservative. Surgical treatment is required when radiological results indicate anatomical abnormality. This study aims to present the surgical outcomes of TOS patients treated with supraclavicular approach via microsurgery.

MATERIAL and METHODS: 41 patients with thoracic outlet syndrome were rewieved retrospectively. The pain was determined using both on visual analogue scale (VAS) and Oswestry score both in the preoperative and postoperative period. All patients underwent electromyography including brachial plexus, ulnar and median nerves. Computed Tomography (CT) angiographic examination was applied dynamically with required manoeuvres.

RESULTS: Post-op VAS scores were recorded as 0.8 for the arm, 0.6 for the shoulder and 0.5 for the neck, while pre-op VAS scores were 6.3 for the arm, 6.0 for the shoulder and 5.2 for the neck. Post-op Oswestry disability index (ODI) average was found as 14,2, while this figure was 67,4 during the pre-operative period.

CONCLUSION: Accurate patient selection is imperative for increasing the success of TOS surgery. Microscopic TOS surgery yields satisfactory results with smaller incision, safer surgery and a lower rate of complication. Keywords : Thoracic outlet syndrome, Supraclavicular approach, Surgery

Corresponding author : Onur Yaman, dronuryaman@yahoo.com