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

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Insurance companies do not insure surgeons for sympathectomy

Yes, hard to believe but surgeons have to be forced in this way to discontinue performing the operation as it cost insurance companies too much money. These cases are settled before it has a chance to go to court and have some publicity. The people who decide to take the payments have to do so in exchange of a gag order. They can never speak about the operation. Not to anybody, anywhere, in any form. This kind of silencing and secrecy is perpetuating the surgeons ability to sell and perform the surgery on the unsuspecting and misinformed patient.
At least there is some change in Australia, but not all insurance companies have the same policy.
In the meantime many people fall victim to the euphemism and ignorance of the surgeons and end up having a procedure that was a predecessor of lobotomy.
It is the medical scandal of this century!!!!
I never thought that the insurance companies will play the role of protecting the patient from potentially harmful procedures. Isn't that the of the medical profession and government agencies overseeing medical procedures. Somebody failing the patients here!

Sympathectomy (coverage will not be provided for this procedure)
www.avant.org.au/public/pdf/Standard_Policy_Application_Form.pdf -