[Surgical treatment of funnel chest]

The main problems of indication, operating techniques and results are recalled after 39 cases of pectus excavatum (P.E.) operated on 74 followed up children. Analysis revealed frequent family trend, respiratory past records of Marfan's morphological type and intrathoracic spur. Sternochondroplasty had varied stabilizing ways : first Garnier's technique, then Judet's costal clips, today the mediastinal rod of Morel. The relative deterioration of morphological results depended on the reliability of the manner of fixing. For good results, neither age, sex, nor the importance of the retraction interfered. The unfavourable elements are the gently sloping thorax and associated vertebral manifestation.