Pectus Excavatum | Imamother

amother

Thu, Apr 07 2011, 1:37 pm

My ds has this condition. It's also known as "sunken chest". Anyone have experience with this?

amother

Thu, Apr 07 2011, 5:18 pm

I think my husband has it, but I don't think he even notices it. it's just the way he is.

amother

Thu, Apr 07 2011, 6:00 pm

How old is your son?

My son had this when he was little. It was freaky to watch him breathe; he looked like he was struggling for every breath, but he wasn't. It was just the way the chest looked. The ped told me to wait a bit, like till he's 2-3 years to see if it straightens out on its own otherwise he'll need surgery to correct it. BH it straightened out on its own. Did your doc recommend surgery? Even if it doesn't correct itself, it's not always bad enough to warrant surgery.

amother

Thu, Apr 07 2011, 6:06 pm

One of my brothers had this. It was no big deal. My mom freaked out. The doctor said not to go bare chested on the beach, lest it turn off the girls. THat was his only advice. He is about 35 now, happily married with 7 kids. It could be that his case was really minor, though.

amother

Thu, Apr 07 2011, 6:14 pm

op here. He's 18 months old. He has respiratory issues since he's 8 months old. He's not walking and is very small. My Dr. got me an appt to a specialist for right after pesach. He's concerned and so am I. He also doesn'r sit properly which was why I went to the ped today.

amother

Thu, Apr 07 2011, 8:09 pm

Pectus excavatum by itself is pretty common and usually causes no problems. If the bones are putting pressure on the lungs, it can cause a breathing problem. But if your ds's breathing problems are more like asthma / congestion, that would not be caused by a pectus excavatum.

The pectus excavatum can (less commonly) be part of a syndrome. So it could be that the pectus excavatum + awkward sitting + small size are part of a syndrome. Or maybe they are not related to each other at all.

Please post if you need more information.

amother

Thu, Apr 07 2011, 8:15 pm

My dr thinks he might be putting some pressure on his airways and working very hard to breathe therefore using his energy to breathe instead of gaining weight. He also has a chronic runny nose. Aside from that, he is a deliciously cute little boy.

amother

Thu, Apr 07 2011, 8:25 pm

"Syndrome" is just a fancy word that means "a group of symptoms together in one person". Just like each person is different in personality, each person is also different in physical characteristics. These may just be normal "differences" in your ds. The doctor will figure out which ones need to be addressed (if any) and which ones are not a problem. If the doctor finds a specific syndrome, that will help determine which things need to be addressed.

amother

Fri, Apr 08 2011, 1:00 am

my baby has this, we are seeing a pulmonologist to make sure hes breathing ok since he breaths on the faster side. we have had 2 chest xrays and bh both r fine. what kind of specialist? I hope all goes well.