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
The most common complication is post-sympathectomy neuralgia
Neural Blockade in Clinical Anesthesia and Management of Pain
By Michael J. Cousins, Phillip
"The most common complication is post-sympathectomy neuralgia.... The reported incidence has varied widely between studies, from around 30% to 50%. Whether the sympathectomy is achived by open surgical resection or percutaneous techniques does not seem to influence the incidence."
by Robert W. Hobson, Samuel E. Wilson, Frank J. Veith - 2004 - Medical - 1600 pages
Postsympathectomy neuralgia is a constant and annoying feature of sympathectomy, and the patient should be forewarned.
