What is Pectus Excavatum?
What is
Pectus
Excavatum?
Pectus excavatum, also called pectus, is the most common chest wall abnormality. Other common terms for it are sunken chest syndrome, concave chest, or funnel chest. The top of the chest appears sunken, due to abnormalities of the tissue that connects the ribs to the sternum.
The exact cause of pectus excavatum isn't fully known, but it's thought to happen because the tissue that connects the ribs to the breastbone grows in an unusual way. Pectus excavatum usually becomes noticeable during childhood, but it often gets worse during the teenage years, especially during a growth spurt.
Pectus excavatum can vary in severity. Some people have only a mild indentation. Others have a more pronounced depression in the chest.
Pectus excavatum is not preventable. But it can be repaired, which is an important step for many people.
Often, young people experience symptoms with this condition, which are not limited to cosmetic concerns, such as the appearance of the chest. Many also suffer from pectus excavatum pain, which can affect their daily lives.
Because of the chest indentation, pectus excavatum reduces the needed space for the lungs and heart to work properly.
So, you may find you're:
- Not able to exercise for very long1,2
- Short of breath1,2
- Easily tired1,2
- Having heart valve issues or other heart problems2,3
- Experiencing a racing heart1,2
- Having chest pain2
Someone with physical symptoms like those listed above should take them seriously. Symptoms like these can affect quality of life. Moreover, pectus excavatum symptoms can worsen over time as someone ages. This is often when it becomes more difficult to repair.
Not all people with pectus excavatum experience symptoms, or they may not be aware they have these symptoms since pectus excavatum develops slowly over time.
Pectus excavatum can also affect how you feel about yourself. You may feel uncomfortable about how your chest looks or you may be bothered by how the condition causes rounded shoulders. Some people can even develop feelings of depression.2
Repair should also be considered to improve self-esteem—because that too is very important to having a good quality of life.
The chest's appearance—and physical symptoms—can worsen during your growth spurt in the early teenage years.3
Usually repair, using the Nuss procedure, is done about the same time: when people are in their teens.4 Repairing pectus excavatum becomes a more difficult procedure when patients enter their 30's & 40's as the chest becomes less flexible.
There are surgeons that specialize in pectus excavatum repair, find a specialist near you
- Corey, C. (2023, January 6). Mayo Clinic Q and A: Pediatric pectus excavtum. Mayo Clinic. Retrieved September 24, 2024, from https://newsnetwork.mayoclinic.org/discussion/mayo-clinic-q-and-a-pediatric-pectus-excavatum/
- Cleveland Clinic. (2023, August 11). Pectus Excavatum. Retrieved September 24, 2024, from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/17328-pectus-excavatum
- Hebra, A. (2024, August 12). Pectus Excavatum. Medscape. Retrieved September 24, 2024, from https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/1004953
- Cleveland Clinic. (2022, March 9). Nuss Procedure. Retrieved September 24, 2024, from https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/treatments/22635-nuss-procedure
- Standford Medicine Children's Health. (2024). Pectus Excavatum. Retrieved September 24, 2024, from https://www.stanfordchildrens.org/en/services/chest-wall/pectus-excavatum.html