Vacuum Bell: Is It a Useful Innovative Device for Pectus Excavatum Correction?

Area of Science:

• Thoracic Surgery
• Medical Devices
• Non-invasive Treatments

Background:

• Pectus Excavatum (PE) is a common anterior chest wall deformity.
• Treatment options include operative and non-invasive techniques.
• The Vacuum Bell (VB) is a widely used non-invasive device for PE.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the efficacy of the Vacuum Bell (VB) device for Pectus Excavatum (PE).
• To evaluate VB as monotherapy and its intraoperative use.
• To identify factors influencing VB treatment outcomes.

Main Methods:

• A narrative review of 13 English-written articles on VB therapy up to February 2019.
• Analysis of studies involving patients with mild to moderate PE.
• Evaluation of treatment outcomes using Haller-Index and sternum depth.

Main Results:

• 37-90% of patients showed depth improvement, with 10-40% achieving excellent correction.
• Haller-Index improved in 42% of patients, with a median decrease of 0.3.
• Mild and temporary complications were noted; intraoperative VB use improved MIRPE safety and results.

Conclusions:

• VB is an effective, well-tolerated conservative treatment for selected PE patients.
• VB is a valuable tool for intraoperative use during Minimally Invasive Repair of Pectus Excavatum (MIRPE).
• Further research can explore correlations between VB efficacy and various patient/treatment factors.