Thoracic outlet syndrome (TOS) is used to describe the constellation of symptoms arising from neurovascular compression of the thoracic outlet. The structures passing through the thoracic outlet include the subclavian artery, subclavian vein and trunks of the brachial plexus. Patients may experience symptoms related to compression of any one or various combinations of these structures. Arterial pathology as the cause of TOS is rare, though repetitive overhead arm motion, such as seen in athletes, is a risk factor for developing arterial TOS (aTOS). Symptoms include chronic findings, such as pallor, arm claudication or cool arm. Currently diagnosis of aTOS is made using clinical and imaging parameters which include focused history and physical including provocative maneuvers and imaging follow-up ranging from angiography to MRI. Occasionally, acute thrombosis can result in limb threatening ischemia requiring emergent catheter directed thrombolysis. Outside of acute limb ischemia, management of aTOS is variable, however typically begins with conservative measures such as physical therapy. In patients who do not respond or progress on conservative management, surgical decompression may be performed. Open or endovascular treatment of subclavian artery pathology may be necessary for recalcitrant cases. In this article, the aim is to review the elements involving diagnosis and management of aTOS.

OBJECTIVEThe goal of this study was to evaluate the predictive value and relative contribution of noninvasive presurgical functional imaging modalities based on the authors’ institutional experience in pursuing seizure-free surgical outcomes in children with medically refractory epilepsy.METHODSThis was a retrospective, single-institution, observational cohort study of pediatric patients who underwent evaluation and surgical treatment for medically refractory partial epilepsy between December 2003 and June 2016. During this interval, 108 children with medically refractory partial epilepsy underwent evaluation for localization and resective epilepsy surgery. Different noninvasive functional imaging modalities, including ictal SPECT, FDG-PET, and magnetoencephalography–magnetic source imaging, were utilized to augment a standardized paradigm (electroencephalography/semiology, MRI, and neuropsychology findings) for localization. Outcomes were evaluated at a minimum of 2 years (mean 7.5 years) utilizing area under the receiver operating characteristic curve analysis. Localizing modalities and other clinical covariates were examined in relation to long-term surgical outcomes.RESULTSThere was variation in the contribution of each test, and no single presurgical workup modality could singularly and reliably predict a seizure-free outcome. However, concordance of presurgical modalities yielded a high predictive value. No difference in long-term outcomes between inconclusive (normal or diffusely abnormal) and abnormal focal MRI results were found. Long-term survival analyses revealed a statistically significant association between seizure freedom and patients with focal ictal EEG, early surgical intervention, and no history of generalized convulsions.CONCLUSIONSComprehensive preoperative evaluation utilizing multiple noninvasive functional imaging modalities is not redundant and can improve pediatric epilepsy surgical outcomes.

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