Radionecrosis and Infection of the Chest Wall and Sternum
To view the entire topic, please log in or purchase a subscription.
STS Cardiothoracic Surgery E-Book from The Society of Thoracic Surgeons provides expert guidance for Cardiac and Thoracic Surgery. Sections include Pearson’s General Thoracic, Esphageal, Adult Cardiac, and Pediatric and Congenital Cardiac Surgery. Explore these free sample topics:
-- The first section of this topic is shown below --
Key Points
- Infection or radionecrosis accounts for about 20% of chest wall resections and reconstructions.
- Careful preoperative planning with a plastic surgeon is critical.
- All irradiated and infected tissue are removed.
- Reconstruction with muscle or myocutaneous flaps yields good results.
Radionecrosis and infection of the chest wall are relatively uncommon problems, yet they are difficult to manage without experience. These lesions usually occur in patients that are debilitated and immunosuppressed from a protracted illness. Radionecrosis is an iatrogenic illness. This chapter describes the pathophysiology of radiation necrosis and chest wall infections and explains the management of this difficult problem.
-- To view the remaining sections of this topic, please log in or purchase a subscription --
Key Points
- Infection or radionecrosis accounts for about 20% of chest wall resections and reconstructions.
- Careful preoperative planning with a plastic surgeon is critical.
- All irradiated and infected tissue are removed.
- Reconstruction with muscle or myocutaneous flaps yields good results.
Radionecrosis and infection of the chest wall are relatively uncommon problems, yet they are difficult to manage without experience. These lesions usually occur in patients that are debilitated and immunosuppressed from a protracted illness. Radionecrosis is an iatrogenic illness. This chapter describes the pathophysiology of radiation necrosis and chest wall infections and explains the management of this difficult problem.
There's more to see -- the rest of this topic is available only to subscribers.