Pectus Carinatum Treatment: The Do’s and Don’ts

abdul waheedDecember 30, 2023

48 4 minutes read

Last Updated on March 3, 2024 by Ali Hamza

Even though pectus carinatum is present in patients since birth, symptoms start appearing around the age of 11 or 12. The deformity makes the breast bone stick out and can affect the patient’s self-image, breathing, and posture. If your child has pigeon chest, it’s unlikely to get better without treatment.

The condition isn’t life-threatening, but the treatment will depend on the severity of the deformity and your child’s age. If not treated or left to develop for too long, surgery might be required to fix the deformity. To avoid putting your child through this, we’ve compiled a list of dos and don’ts. Read on to discover more!

Pectus Carinatum Treatments Over Time

Pectus carinatum is a disorder that most commonly affects boys, but girls can suffer from it, too. As your child grows, the deformity develops, too, and gets worse if not treated.

History of Pectus Carinatum

The first description of the pigeon chest came in the sixteenth century in a classic paper by Bauhinus. Before describing the deformity, Johan Schenck recognized the pectus carinatum and documented it. Schenck then analyzed the genetic deformity symptoms and features in a patient suffering from paroxysmal cough and shortness of breath.

Coulson continued the research and, in 1820, noted the genetic predisposition for the deformity. He documented his findings in a report citing a family of three brothers detailing the condition’s clinical spectrum.

Many cases of pectus carinatum, including the W. Ebstein five case report, surfaced in the 19th century with clinical details. At that time, the treatment included: lateral pressure, aerobic exercises, breathing, and fresh air. It wasn’t until the 20th century that surgery was introduced and brought to perfection by Dr. Donald Nuss. Luckily, today we have two treatment options — bracing, the most commonly recommended treatment, and surgery, which should almost never be your first choice.

Prevalence in Adolescence

Pectus carinatum is a condition prevalent in teen boys, and as we mentioned, it’s more frequent in boys than girls. While the cause is still not known, the condition is genetic. Pectus carinatum can develop in children with:

Marfan
Morquio
Noonan, and
Ehlers-Danlos syndrome

Besides, teen boys with chromosomal abnormalities, brittle bone disease, or cardiofaciocutaneous syndrome are also prone to pectus carinatum.

What Is Remote Treatment?

Remote treatment is a telemedicine service allowing constant monitoring of a patient’s performance and condition. It means pectus carinatum patients can get healthcare from their homes, and it involves the use of advanced information technology for patient data. Unlike traditional treatment methods, patients can engage medical health personnel from where they eat, play, work or live. Let’s go over a few benefits of remote treatment:

At-Home Visits

Doctors provide follow-ups and monitor patients’ condition and recovery performance with at-home visits. Health personnel collects necessary data, and these visits ensure patients follow proper procedures for the best possible results.

Early Intervention

Early intervention is another benefit of remote treatment. If your child has a mild case of pectus carinatum, you can reach out to healthcare providers for remote treatment before the symptoms become noticeable. Pectus carinatum patients don’t have to book hospital appointments, with remote treatment being an ideal alternative.

Improves Quality of Care

Remote treatment allows patients to take part in health management actively. Patients can observe their symptoms and condition and discuss with providers for quality healthcare. Patient engagement with healthcare issues often leads to better outcomes and satisfaction.

What Is In-Person Treatment?

Unlike the remote healthcare system, in-person treatment occurs in healthcare facilities. This treatment is helpful for patients as healthcare providers identify non-verbal cues and pick up body language. Medical professionals use collected data to create different theories and modalities and develop systematic approaches to solve medical problems.

Cost, mode of engagement, and treatment policy differentiate between in-person and remote treatment. Besides, the in-person treatment enables a thorough assessment of patients and evaluation leading to accurate prescriptions.

Differences in Cost

As we mentioned, surgery and chest braces are two possible treatments for pectus carinatum, but they differ in cost. Visiting a doctor for pectus carinatum surgery comes at a price but is free with a Dakota Brace. While symptoms of pectus carinatum and treatment plans vary from patient to patient, occupational and physical therapists can also evaluate your child.

This evaluation costs anywhere from $169 to $750 for a new office visit and from $49 to $583 for established patients. But you never have to worry about these prices with Dakota Brace’s pectus carinatum brace. These cost-effective braces can save you thousands of dollars in the long run while providing results in as little as six months.

Why Remote Treatment Works

This non-surgical treatment system ensures healthcare providers build engagements with patients and get faster access to their data for monitoring. Remote monitoring with a free video conference platform is another reason this treatment method works. This platform can evaluate pectus carinatum cases, allowing healthcare providers to monitor patients. Besides, connected health devices such as biometric and implantable devices are invaluable to the process.

The Bottom Line

Choosing between remote and in-person treatments or learning how to fix pectus carinatum challenges many patients. But remote treatment with Dakota Brace is a great solution. Are you ready to restore your child’s health and confidence? Click here for your free consultation and get $75 off your first order.

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