What Is Pectus Excavatum (Funnel Chest)?
Pectus excavatum is a type of chest wall deformity. It causes your chest to look sunken or indented. This sunken shape is why people sometimes call the condition funnel chest.
Pectus excavatum causes a 人妻中出视频鈥檚 breastbone and ribcage to grow asymmetrically during puberty. This can put pressure on their chest and cause a sunken shape.
Is Pectus Excavatum Dangerous?
Pectus excavatum isn鈥檛 dangerous and doesn鈥檛 cause life-threatening complications. Occasionally, it can cause 人妻中出视频ren to get tired very easily or be unable to exercise. Some families choose to repair pectus excavatum if the appearance or symptoms bother their 人妻中出视频.
How Common Is Pectus Excavatum?
Pectus excavatum affects about 1 in 400 人妻中出视频ren. It鈥檚 three times more common in boys than in girls.
Pectus Excavatum vs. Pectus Carinatum
Pectus excavatum is when the chest has a sunken appearance. Pectus carinatum is when the chest juts outward. Another name for pectus carinatum is pigeon chest.
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Pectus Excavatum Causes
Children鈥檚 bones are mostly made of a strong tissue called cartilage before they go through puberty. Their bones harden and replace that cartilage during puberty. Pectus excavatum can occur when your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 chest bones don鈥檛 grow evenly during this process.
Is Pectus Excavatum Genetic?
Pectus excavatum can run in families. But experts don鈥檛 know exactly why. They haven鈥檛 identified a specific gene change (mutation) that causes pectus excavatum.
Pectus Excavatum Symptoms
The main symptom of pectus excavatum is an indented appearance to the chest. This is the only symptom for many people.
Sometimes 人妻中出视频ren have symptoms that affect their heart and lungs:
- Coughing or wheezing
- Difficulty tolerating exercise
- Rapid heartbeat
- Shortness of breath (dyspnea)
There鈥檚 no difference in pectus excavatum symptoms between males and females. The depth of the indentation doesn鈥檛 determine your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 symptoms either. Experts don鈥檛 know exactly why some 人妻中出视频ren have symptoms and others don鈥檛.
Hear From Katie Russell, MD, and Brock, a Former Patient
Pectus Excavatum Diagnosis
Your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 pediatric specialist may initially diagnose pectus excavatum based on a physical exam. They will also use a CT scan to get a closer look at how deep your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 indentation is.
We may use other tests if your 人妻中出视频 has heart or lung symptoms:
- Allergy testing
- Echocardiogram
- Electrocardiogram
- Pulmonary function tests
- Stress test
Pectus Excavatum Treatment
The main treatment for pectus excavatum is surgery. Sometimes, we may discuss a nonsurgical treatment called vacuum bell therapy with you. We usually reserve this therapy for 人妻中出视频ren who are too young to have surgery.
The best time to perform pectus excavatum surgery is while 人妻中出视频ren are young teenagers. Your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 bones mold more easily at this age because they aren鈥檛 fully hardened.
Many 人妻中出视频ren grow into healthy, active adults without pectus excavatum surgery. The appearance or symptoms of pectus excavatum may bother other 人妻中出视频ren. Surgery may be worth considering in these cases. Your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 pediatric specialist can help you and your 人妻中出视频 weigh the pros and cons of surgery. They can help you make the decision that鈥檚 right for your 人妻中出视频.
Pectus Excavatum Surgery
There are two main techniques for pectus excavatum surgery:
- Nuss procedure: We use the Nuss procedure, a minimally invasive surgery, for most 人妻中出视频ren. Your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 surgeon makes two small incisions on each side of your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 chest. Then they insert a metal C-shaped bar through the incisions. They position the bar behind your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 breastbone to help correct the depression in their chest. Your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 bones grow around the bar into a more typical shape. The bar stays in place for three years. Then we remove it.
- Ravitch procedure: We rarely use the Ravitch procedure, which is an open surgery. Your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 surgeon makes a large incision in your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 chest and breastbone. They repair and reshape the chest with implanted bars. We only use this approach when pectus excavatum is very severe, which is rare.
After Surgery Instructions | Instrucciones Para Despu茅s de la Cirug铆a
Pectus Excavatum Surgery Recovery
Children usually miss about 1鈥2 weeks of school after pectus excavatum Nuss surgery. They will have some pain and discomfort while they heal. Our surgeons use a technique during surgery that freezes specific nerves to help numb them. This technique is called intercostal nerve cryoablation, and it can drastically reduce your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 pain.
Children will need about 4鈥6 weeks to feel like participating in their usual activities. Full recovery takes 4鈥8 weeks. Ask your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 surgeon if your 人妻中出视频 needs to follow any activity-specific restrictions during healing.
Why Choose 人妻中出视频 of Utah 人妻中出视频?
人妻中出视频 of Utah specialists with the Utah Pectus Program treat more than 100 人妻中出视频ren with pectus excavatum each year. Our surgical team has extensive experience caring for 人妻中出视频ren with this condition. We have the skills and technology to offer techniques that reduce your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 hospital stay and create an easier recovery.
Make an Appointment
Call 801-662-2950 to schedule an appointment with our team. We don鈥檛 require referrals, but some insurance plans do. Our team will help you verify your insurance coverage before your 人妻中出视频鈥檚 appointment.
