Chest Wall Reconstruction
Medically reviewed by Drugs.com. Last updated on May 6, 2024.
What do I need to know about chest wall reconstruction?
Chest wall reconstruction is surgery to repair the chest wall. The chest wall is made of bones, cartilage, and muscles. The chest wall protects your heart and lungs and helps you breathe. The chest wall may be damaged due to disease, trauma, or surgery.
How do I prepare for chest wall reconstruction?
- Your surgeon will talk to you about how to prepare for surgery. Your surgeon may tell you not to eat or drink anything after midnight on the day of your surgery. Arrange to have someone drive you home after you are discharged.
- Tell your surgeon about all your current medicines. Your surgeon will tell you if you need to stop any medicine for surgery, and when to stop. Your surgeon will tell you which medicines to take or not take on the day of surgery.
- Tell your surgeon about any allergies you have, including to medicines or anesthesia. You may be given antibiotics to prevent an infection.
What will happen during chest wall reconstruction?
- You will be given general anesthesia to keep you asleep and free from pain during surgery. Your surgeon will make an incision near your chest. Your surgeon may insert a soft or hard prosthesis into your chest to create a new wall. The material used will depend on your condition.
- Your surgeon may use muscle from a different part of your body, such as your leg, to create the chest wall. A separate incision will be made. The muscle will be taken out of your body part and sewn into the new chest wall.
What should I expect after chest wall reconstruction?
- A chest tube is placed during surgery to drain air and extra fluid from around your lungs. This allows your lungs and heart to work properly. The chest tube may be removed 24 to 48 hours after surgery. Your provider will monitor how much fluid collects and decide when to remove it.
- A Foley catheter is a tube put into your bladder to drain urine into a bag. Keep the bag below your waist. This will prevent urine from flowing back into your bladder and causing an infection or other problems. Also, keep the tube free of kinks so the urine will drain properly. Do not pull on the catheter. This can cause pain and bleeding, and may cause the catheter to come out.
- Extra oxygen may be needed if your blood oxygen level is lower than it should be. You may get oxygen through a mask placed over your nose and mouth or through small tubes placed in your nostrils.
- You may not be able to do your normal activities for a few months. Your chest will need time to heal. For 6 to 8 weeks after surgery, you will need to follow your healthcare provider's activity instructions.
What are the risks of chest wall reconstruction?
You may develop an infection at your surgery site. Your body may reject the prosthesis. You may need another surgery to take the prosthesis out. You may need more surgeries if the reconstruction does not work. You may develop pneumonia or respiratory failure. This can become life-threatening.
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Further information
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