Surgical correction of pectus excavatum is done for medical reasons. Children with moderate to severe defects often experience shortness of breath, exercise intolerance and chest pain. These are the results of compression and displacement of the heart and secondary lung compression.

After a complete health history, a thorough physical exam, chest measurements, and photographs, children whose condition is considered severe enough to warrant surgery are sent for further evaluation of their cardiac status, pulmonary function, and a CT scan. These studies help determine whether the patient fulfills the criteria for surgery, since not every child requires surgical correction.

The operation is easier and the recovery time faster in children who are preadolescent, because their bones and cartilage are more flexible. However, there has been an increase in the number of teenagers undergoing the procedure and results are equally good in older patients up to the mid-twenties.
Long-Term Results
Long-term follow-up (over 15 years) shows the Nuss Procedure provides excellent results with less than 5% recurrence of the deformity after the bar is removed.

The operation for correction starts with general anesthesia and the placement of an epidural catheter for the management of pain after the operation. Two lateral incisions are made on either side of the chest for insertion of a curved steel bar under the sternum. A separate, small lateral incision is made to allow for a thorascope (small camera) for direct visualization as the bar is passed under the sternum. The bar is individually curved for each patient. The bar is used to pop out the depression.
It is then fixed to the ribs on either side and the incisions are closed and dressed. A small steel, grooved plate may be used at the end of the bar to help stabilize and fix the bar to the rib. The bar is not visible from the outside and stays in place for a minimum of two years. When it is time, the bar is removed as an outpatient procedure.

The pectus support bar is removed between two to four years after insertion on an outpatient basis. The procedure is done under general anesthesia and in over 160 patients who have had their bars removed there were no complications. Patients were able to leave the hospital within one to two hours after bar removal. Patients who reside more than one hour from the hospital are expected to spend their first night in town.

The immediate recovery time in the hospital is 4-5 days. Attention is paid to postoperative pain management, encouragement to breathe deeply, assistance with movement (so as not to dislodge the bar), and patient/parent education.
After discharge, the patient is expected to slowly resume normal, but restricted, activity. Most children are able to return to school in two to three weeks, with exercise restrictions for six weeks (i.e. no physical education, no heavy lifting, etc.). Once fully recovered they may return to regular activity.