What are chest wall deformities?

Also known as: pectus excavatum (sunken chest, funnel chest), pectus carinatum (pigeon chest).

Conditions that cause physical abnormalities of the chest are known as chest wall deformities. The most common are pectus excavatum (sunken chest or funnel chest) and pectus carinatum (pigeon chest).

Pectus excavatum features a chest that is depressed, while with pectus carinatum, the chest protrudes outward. Combination deformities occur, where one side is depressed and the other protuberant. Some children also have scoliosis as a result of the chest wall deformities, as the boney abnormality of the thorax (chest wall) can be both anterior (in front) or posterior (in back).

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Reviewed by: Cathy Anne Burnweit, MD

This page was last updated on: 1/29/2019 3:21:13 PM