[Surgical treatment of deformities of the anterior thoracic wall by frontal chondrotomy: an original technic].

According to the author, the frequency of recurrence after sternochondroplasty is related to the poor quality of the chondral callus which is of limited thickness. In addition, it is subjected to shearing force at each respiratory movement. The author proposes frontal chondrotomies allowing anterior displacement in funnel chests or posterior cartilages are sutured. The correction obtained is stable without any supplementary fixation. The plane of section being perpendicular to respiratory movement, the sutures are no longer submitted to shearing strain but to alternate compression and traction. In this way secondary displacement is avoided.