Purpose: Historically the classification of Thoracic Outlet Syndrome (TOS) has been based on symptoms rather than underlying pathology. Therefore, TOS classified into Neurogenic (NTOS), Venous (VTOS or Paget Schroetter Syndrome) and Arterial (ATOS) subgroups. This resulted in confusion among medical practitioners, difficulty making diagnosis, poor results with surgical intervention. Methods: Th...

Extensive sternal resection carries the risk of difficult reconstruction and surgical complications. A 79-year-old woman underwent sternal resection and reconstruction for sternal chondrosarcoma. However, 18 months after the first operation, she developed six metastatic tumors on the anterior chest wall. She underwent subtotal sternectomy and rib resection, leaving a defect measuring 17 × 14 cm...

A 61-year-old female underwent right hemihepatectomy and caudate lobectomy for hilar cholangiocarcinoma in 1999. Ten years later, increasing serum carbohydrate 19-9 was detected by routine follow-up. Subsequent positron emission tomography revealed an asymptomatic lesion in the right 11th rib. As the mass steadily grew in size, the lesion was resected en bloc with the affected rib and muscle. T...

BACKGROUND Costal exostosis is a benign condition that sometimes requires emergent surgery because of associated hemothorax; in addition, there have been cases with malignant transformation to chondrosarcoma. Here, we describe an asymptomatic patient who underwent thoracoscopic resection for primary costal exostosis. CASE PRESENTATION A 16-year-old male was found to have a bow-shaped shadow o...

Fibrous dysplasia involving the thoracic spine is very rare. This patient had monostotic fibrous dysplasia involving the vertebral body, posterior elements, and right seventh rib with focal neurologic signs. The radiographic and bone scan findings are shown. The patient was treated successfully with tumor resection and arthrodesis using combined anterior and posterior approaches. Although fibro...

The supracostal extraperitoneal and extrapleural approach provides wide exposure during renal and adrenal operations without damaging the neurovascular bundles and spares the partial resection of rib. We performed renal and adrenal operations on 33 patients by this approach. The procedures were accomplished smoothly obtaining a broad surgical field without costal resection. Complications were r...

The authors report the case of a 28-year-old female patient with a giant cell tumor originating from the rib. The tumor, measuring 25 x 17 cm, occupied the entire hemithorax and caused atelectasis of the left lung. This tumor was a benign mesenchymal neoplasm, which rarely affects the ribs. A thoracotomy involving en bloc resection of the chest wall and tumor was performed. Despite the large di...