Costal Cartilages Do Not Overgrow in Patients with Pectus Excavatum

OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to determine whether or not patients with pectus excavatum (PE) exhibit costal cartilage overgrowth compared to normal subjects. MATERIALS AND METHODS The computed tomography acquisitions of 32 patients with PE and 35 normal controls were analyzed. On axial images the length of the 4th-7th costal cartilages was measured to calculate the Haller index. The ratio between the length of the cartilages and the median of the transverse and longitudinal thorax diameters were recorded to account for anatomical variability. The length of the cartilages was compared between the PE and control subjects using the independent-samples t test. For patients with asymmetric PE the length of the 4th-7th costal cartilages was compared between the rotated and nonrotated sides. RESULTS The mean transverse and coronal thorax diameters were 233.29 ± 24.47 and 231.69 ± 22.47 mm for PE patients and 252.67 ± 37.25 and 238.64 ± 27.40 mm for controls, respectively, with no significant differences between the two groups (p = 0.816 and 0.145). The mean sagittal diameter (59.30 ± 14.21 mm) and Haller index (4.02 ± 1.34) in the PE group were significantly different from the controls (107.34 ± 19.59 and 2.2 ± 0.54 mm, respectively; p = 0.00). Actual and relative lengths of costal cartilages were similar in both PE subjects and controls for all 4 costal cartilages measured. In subjects with asymmetric PE, both relative and absolute costal cartilage lengths were similar on the rotated and nonrotated side. CONCLUSIONS The length of the 4th, 5th, 6th and 7th costal cartilages was similar in PE patients and the control subjects. These was also similar between the rotated and nonrotated sides of the sternum in patients with asymmetric PE.