FRIDAY, Aug. 11 (HealthDay News) -- Contrary to suggestions that the repair of the pectus excavatum -- or "funnel chest" -- should be considered cosmetic surgery that results in minimal physiologic improvement, the procedure significantly improves cardiovascular function, according to a report in the August issue of Chest.
Moh H. Malek, M.S., of the Human Performance Laboratory of the Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln, and colleagues conducted a meta-analysis of eight studies conducted between January 1960 and May 2005 that represented 169 pectus excavatum patients.
Using random-effects modeling, the researchers found that the procedure had a statistically significant mean weighted effect size for cardiovascular function.
Because information on the surgical repair of pectus excavatum is limited, inconsistent and mostly from small studies, physicians often tell their patients that the condition is mostly a cosmetic problem and will improve as they age, the authors point out. Moreover, physicians tend to advise that surgery to repair the deformity is not very effective.
"Because of the inconsistent findings in the research literature and the high cost of surgery, health insurance companies are reluctant to authorize corrective surgery," the authors state. "The total medical cost of surgical repair for pectus excavatum may be [more than] $30,000, and many patients cannot afford this procedure without assistance from their health care insurance."
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