The amount of compensatory sweating depends on the patient, the damage that the white rami communicans incurs, and the amount of cell body reorganization in the spinal cord after surgery.
Other potential complications include inadequate resection of the ganglia, gustatory sweating, pneumothorax, cardiac dysfunction, post-operative pain, and finally Horner’s syndrome secondary to resection of the stellate ganglion.
www.ubcmj.com/pdf/ubcmj_2_1_2010_24-29.pdf

After severing the cervical sympathetic trunk, the cells of the cervical sympathetic ganglion undergo transneuronic degeneration
After severing the sympathetic trunk, the cells of its origin undergo complete disintegration within a year.
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1439-0442.1967.tb00255.x/abstract

Tuesday, January 15, 2008

Changes in personality after SYMPATHECTOMY

For a patient initially housebound by intractable social fear, the psychiatric effects of sympathetctomy might represent an acceptable trade-off against the physical problems. But the vast majority of ETS patients are treated for the cosmetic condition of excessive sweating and have no idea that they are consenting to a surgery which may permanently alter their personality.

Quote from:
http://www.truthaboutets.com/Pages/PsychoSurg.html