Operative treatment of pectus excavatum -7 cases used retrosternal metal bar-

누두흉의 외과적 치료 -Metal bar를 이용한 수술치험 7예-

From Jan. 1983 to Dec. 1985, seven cases of pectus excavatum, six were male and one female, were underwent an operation at the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery, Kyungpook National University Hospital. The ages of patients ranged from 6 to 27 years. They all had symptoms of feeling inferiority about chest deformity. The concavity on the funnel chest varied in its extent, and the severity, which was measured by water volume filled into it, varied from 59.5cc/m2 to 129.9cc/m2. All but one patients were approached through a bilateral transverse submammary incision and one approached through a vertical midline incision. Successful surgical correction required resection of all deformed costal cartilages with transverse anterior osteotomy and internal fixation using retrosternal metal bar. No serious complication have followed the use of this technique, but minor complications such as serous accumulation, pneumothorax and strut migration have been experienced. All patients were satisfactory about the surgical results.