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Meet the Care Team
Patient Stories
After open-chest surgery for pectus excavatum, Cody becomes unstoppable
Cody is an active baseball player and fisherman who will go head-to-head with an 8-pound bass any day of the week. But when Cody's cardiologist told him he’d likely need to have his chest opened up for surgery, he admits it sounded terrifying.
Conditions We Treat
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Research
We know chest wall abnormalities are caused by abnormal growth of the cartilage between the ribs and the sternum. Research helps us better understand diseases and can lead to advances in diagnosis and treatment.
Genetics
The Research Team at the Center for Pectus and Chest Wall Anomalies is currently participating in a national genetic study looking at the variations in genes in families affected by a pectus diagnosis. Understanding the genetic differences may help us find ways to determine who is likely to develop and what causes the defect in the first place.
Dynamic Compression Bracing
As a center that provides the Dynamic Compression Bracing System for the treatment of pectus carinatum, we are conducting a study to determine the best way to treat our patients using this important technology. We are measuring and comparing the brace compression pressures between several body positions, such as standing, sitting or lying down or on one’s side, to make sure our patients are receiving the most benefit.
Cardiac MRI - How to manage with metal in your body
Our center has been awarded a Discovery Grant from the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center Department of Surgery to develop a process to use Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI), a special type of scanner, to evaluate heart function in patients who have had a surgical repair of their pectus excavatum.