Costal chondritis following very deep flame burns involving the chest wall

Costal chondritis, an unusual and severe infection of the costal cartilages, has infrequently been reported as a complication of burns. As deep burns of the chest wall may result in infection of these cartilages, therapy must be directed at complete resection of the involved cartilages. We describe the clinical course of a 19-year-old woman who sustained this complication following early and aggressive débridement of very deep flame burns involving the chest wall. Excision and coverage with skin grafts, involving several operations, resulted in complete healing 3 months after injury.