vanderbilt doctors

[10carole]

Hi,
I'm new to this site and need a good doctor at Vanderbilt in Nashville TN who does Chiari surgery. Any suggestion?

[selmaS]

  Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum.

I am so sorry your GS is dealing with the symptoms 2 yrs post op......

Do you know what type of decompression he had? Some do not open the dura and this type has very short lived benefits and then needs to be redone.

Also does he have copies of his MRI's b4 and after surgery?

Most of us know there is no cure for Chiari, surgery is done to restore CSF flow and slow progression of a syrinx if he has one....

  The other question I have is were ALL related conditions ruled out B4 surgery? It is possible what he is experiencing is a related condition or related to the surgery.....

[Cecliad]

I have a 16 year old grandson with Chiri , he is in need of a good neuro surgen. He had a decompression 2 years ago in Knox, Tn. The dr said he cured him! He is having symptoms again & the dr who did the first decompression says there is no problem because he was cured! In need of help. Any info helpful, thanks, Dianne

[selmaS]

  Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum.

May I ask where u live, what area?  Do use the list in the Health Pages to research Drs possibly in ur area.....many of us od have to travel to get to a good Dr, so if u know of one, that is where u may want to travel to, as long as he works with ur ins.

[motynes]

My mother had Dr. Cheng at Vanderbilt do a decompression surgery in November of '07.  He was very good and did four others that day.  She had a very good result from her surgery.  She had a 9 mm chairi herniation with a 154 mm srynix.  Because she was missed diagnosed for so long she had some perminate damage to the spinal cord, but a lot of her symptoms are relieved.  I now have been diagnosed and am trying to find a doctor to do the surgery.  If Nashville weren't so far away, I would have him do my surgery.  

[selmaS]

  Bumping up

[selmaS]

  Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum.

Not sure who told u that, but it is not true, I had my heart checked out b4 I had my surgery and I do not have ne heart issues....

What they may have meant and said incorrectly is many with Chiari may have related conditions like POTS, or Ehlers-danlos*  and some of these other conditions  may affect the heart...with EDS* there are several types one being vascular and it can affect the heart....mitral valve prolapse I believe is what it is called...POTS is an Autonomic Dysfunction u may have blood that pools in the extremities, Raynauds Phenomenon, BP issues, heart rate issues....

  But not all with Chiari have these issues.


Symptoms
VSD is an acyanotic congenital heart defect, aka a Left-to-right shunt, so there are no signs of cyanosis.

Cyanosis is the appearance of a blue or purple coloration of the skin or mucous membranes due to the tissues near the skin surface being low on oxygen.

Signs
Pansystolic (Holosystolic) murmur (depending upon the size of the defect) +/- palpable thrill (palpable turbulence of blood flow). Heart sounds are normal. Larger VSDs may cause a parasternal heave, a displaced apex beat (the palpable heartbeat moves laterally over time, as the heart enlarges). An infant with a large VSD will fail to thrive and become sweaty and tachypnoeic (breathe faster) with feeds.
CAUSES: The cause of VSD ( ventricular septal defect) includes the incomplete looping of the heart during days 24-28 of development.

[Deb7890]

My son had Chiari surgery in 2010.  Over 2011 headaches slowly came back and as we entered 2012 they became debilitating.  We've been told ALL Chiari patients also have some sort of heart defect (my son has a VSD). Dr.'s believe headaches are related to VSD, not getting enough oxygenated blood to his brain. Anyone have any info. On this?

[selmaS]

  Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum.

  We do have a list of Drs, the list was compiled by the members here, and is not meant as a referral, but as a means to help u with ur research of drs.
.http://www.medhelp.org/health_pages/Neurological%20Disorders/DOCTORS-LIST-FOR-CHIARI-SYRINGOMYELIA/show/1062?cid=186


Make sure the Dr is a true chiari specialist and checks u for related conditions b4 u decide on surgery...as those other conditions can affect recovery.'

   "selma"

[sharonp372]

HI;

They have finally figured out a diagnosis and it is Chiari malformation.  I live in TN and would love to find the name of the doctor in this state.  I am in the same boat having had symptoms for years.  

Help?
SharonP

[selmaS]

Hi and welcome to the Chiari forum.

Does  ur dr have to be at Vanderbuilt?...There is a dr listed on out thread  that is in Nashville.....Dr Hamp....not sure on the spelling...see the list of chiari specialists....BUT please research all drs to find the one right for u.

We have several members that have had their chiari surgery by this dr in TN.....and I am sure one may offer info on him.

I am happy to welcome u to our little family here , but sorry for the reason u had to seek us out.

"selma"