The Institute of Chest Wall Surgery
Wenlin Chest
Introduction
This abnormality is a rare chest wall deformity that was often mistaken for pectus carinatum in the past. In fact, it is a special type of complex deformities. Given its distinctive characteristics, Dr. Wenlin Wang named it “Wenlin Chest” to distinguish it from other complex deformities during diagnosis and treatment.
Wenlin chest is characterized by an overall thickening of the sternum, which appears as an “S” shape when viewed from the side. The most prominent protrusion is located at the sternal angle in the middle of the chest wall, where the connected rib cartilage and ribs on its both side are also elevated, forming large symmetrical protrusions on both sides of the upper chest wall. The edges of the protrusions are arc-shaped and droop downward, with a depression in the center of the chest wall. This depression is mostly a relative one, with a significant height difference from the bulges above, yet it does not cause substantive compression on the heart and lungs.
Causes
The cause of Wenlin chest remains unknown. It might be related to factors such as metabolism, nutrition, genetics, and abnormalities in embryonic development.
Symptoms
Since the depression of Wenlin chest is generally shallow, it does not severely compress the heart and lungs, and most patients do not exhibit noticeable symptoms. However, the deformity can cause significant psychological stress, leading to severe feeling of inferiority and even triggering a range of psychological issues.
Surgical Procedure
Since Wenlin chest combines both concave and convex deformities, it cannot be treated with either of the single surgical approach used for pectus carinatum or pectus excavatum. Therefore, it requires the simultaneous performance of both surgical procedures to correct this deformity.
Diagnostic Methods
Diagnosis primarily involves a physical examination by observing the appearance of the chest wall, supplemented by imaging examination such as X-ray, chest CT scan, and 3D reconstruction imaging.
