Chest wall surgical stabilization after thoracic trauma: indications and techniques

Traumatic pathology of the chest wall, which is increasing in the new millennium, poses the need to question both pathophysiological and therapeutic aspects, linked to the topography of the bone structure involved and the morphology of the lesion. The different types of treatments (conservative or surgical) cannot ignore the correlation between anatomical and functional damages. This study analyses the various reconstructive methods regarding the flail chest, isolated sternal fracture and manubriosternal dislocation, considering literature and the personal clinical experience. The invasive approach, carried out exclusively on hemodynamically stable patients, has the aim to restore the normal intrathoracic balance pressure and the regular mechanical ventilation, avoiding cardiorespiratory complications. The comparison between the established methodologies and the latest technological innovations also responds to the need of achieving excellent aesthetic results, psychologically and socially indispensable to the patient.