Table 2.
Frequency and severity of symptoms demonstrating significant improvement (n = 20)
| Symptom/problem | % pre-surgery | % post-surgery | % with improvement in frequency post-surgery* | % with worsening of frequency post-surgery* | Frequency P value† |
% with onset post-surgery | % with improvement severity post-surgery* | % with worsening of severity post-surgery* | Severity P value† |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Neck pain | 100% | 100% | 50% (10/20) | 0 | < 0.01 | 0 | 75% (15/20) | 0 | < 0.001 |
| Headaches | 100% | 100% | 55% (11/20) | 10% (2/20) | < 0.05 | 0 | 65% (13/20) | 5% (1/20) | < 0.01 |
| Occipital neuralgia | 85% (17/20) | 80% (16/20) | 52.9% (9/17) | 5.8% (1/17) | 0.01 | 0 | 58.8% (10/17) | 5.8% (1/17) | < 0.01 |
| Muscle pain | 100% | 100% | 35% (7/20) | 0 | < 0.05 | 0 | 40% (8/20) | 10% (2/20) | < 0.05 |
| Joint pain | 95% (19/20) | 95% (19/20) | 26.3% (5/19) | 0 | < 0.05 | 0 | 31.6% (6/19) | 0 | < 0.05 |
| Numbness hands | 95% (19/20) | 85% (17/20) | 68.4% (13/19) | 0 | 0.001 | 0 | 68.4% (13/19) | 0 | 0.001 |
| Numbness elsewhere (LE) | 95% (19/20) | 80% (16/20) | 68.4% (13/19) | 0 | 0.001 | 0 | 57.9% (11/19) | 0 | < 0.01 |
| Weakness arms | 75% (15/20) | 60% (12/20) | 60% (9/15) | 13.3% (2/15) | 0.01 | 0 | 53.3% (8/15) | 13.3% (2/15) | < 0.05 |
| Lightheadedness | 100% | 100% | 55% (11/20) | 0 | < 0.01 | 0 | 40% (8/20) | 10% (2/20) | 0.07 |
| Palpitations | 80% (16/20) | 75% (15/20) | 37.5% (6/16) | 6.3% (1/16) | < 0.05 | 0 | 43.8% (7/16) | 12.5% (2/16) | 0.07 |
| Dizziness | 100% | 100% | 60% (12/20) | 15% (3/20) | < 0.05 | 0 | 50% (10/20) | 15% (3/20) | 0.07 |
| Pre-syncope | 90% (18/20) | 55% (11/20) | 61.1% (11/18) | 11.1% (2/18) | < 0.01 | 0 | 61.1% (11/18) | 11.1% (2/18) | < 0.05 |
| Syncope | 45% (9/20) | 25% (5/20) | 66.7% (6/9) | 0 | < 0.05 | 0 | 66.7% (6/9) | 0 | < 0.05 |
| Brain fog | 100% | 100% | 40% (8/20) | 0 | 0.01 | 0 | 40% (8/20) | 20% (4/20) | 0.15 |
| Tremors | 60% (12/20) | 60% (12/20) | 50% (6/12) | 0 | 0.05 | 5% (1/20) | 58.3% (7/12) | 8.3% (1/12) | 0.10 |
| Vertigo | 75% (15/20) | 65% (13/20) | 60% (9/15) | 0 | 0.01 | 5% (1/20) | 53.3% (8/15) | 13.3% (2/15) | 0.05 |
| Nausea | 90% (18/20) | 75% (15/20) | 61.1% (11/18) | 11.1% (2/18) | < 0.05 | 0 | 44.4% (8/18) | 16.7% (3/18) | < 0.05 |
| Exercise intolerance | 85% (17/20) | 80% (16/20) | 52.9% (9/17) | 5.9% (1/17) | 0.06 | 0 | 64.7% (11/17) | 11.8% (2/17) | < 0.05 |
| Anxiety | 90% (18/20) | 85% (17/20) | 55.6% (10/18) | 11.1% (2/18) | < 0.05 | 0 | 44.4% (8/18) | 11.1% (2/18) | < 0.05 |
| Depression (EDS) | 85% (17/20) | 85% (17/20) | 58.8% (10/17) | 10% (2/20) | 0.01 | 0 | 52.9% (9/17) | 11.8% (2/17) | < 0.05 |
*For those subjects who had symptom/problem prior to surgery
†P values refer to the comparison of the pre-operative and post-operative scores provided by all 20 patients for the frequency (on a 5-point scale) and severity (on a 4-point scale) for each symptom (Wilcoxon signed-rank test), with values < 0.05 indicating significant improvement in that symptom following surgery