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Congenital bifid sternum. Report of an unusual case
S A Teitelbaum1, E W Fonkalsrud
1Department of Surgery, UCLA School of Medicine 90024.
The Journal of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery
|July 1, 1988
Insights
This case study details a rare cleft sternum in a child, successfully repaired surgically at 17 months. This late-stage primary closure offers new hope for similar congenital sternal defects.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Surgery
- Congenital Malformations
- Thoracic Surgery
Background:
- Cleft sternum is a rare congenital defect.
- Complete sternal fusion is typically expected early in infancy.
- Late-stage surgical intervention for cleft sternum is challenging.
Observation:
- A child presented with an unusual cleft sternum.
- The defect featured superior clavicular fusion and inferior xiphoid fusion.
- A wide separation was noted between the fused points.
Findings:
- The child's cleft sternum was surgically closed primarily.
- Successful repair was achieved at 17 months of age.
- This represents a late age for primary surgical correction of this anomaly.
Implications:
- Demonstrates the feasibility of late primary surgical repair for complex cleft sternum.
- Provides a potential treatment option for previously unrepaired or late-presenting cases.
- Contributes to understanding surgical outcomes in congenital sternal malformations.
Abstract:
This article presents the case of a child with an unusual type of cleft sternum characterized by fusion superiorly between the clavicles and inferiorly at the xiphoid with wide intervening separation. The defect was successfully corrected at age 17 months by surgical closure of the cleft primarily, which had not been achieved previously in a patient at this late age.