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Thoracic Surgery for the Acute Care Surgeon pp 145–158Cite as

Rib Fractures and Chest Wall Injury

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Part of the book series: Hot Topics in Acute Care Surgery and Trauma ((HTACST))

Abstract

Rib fractures are one of the most common injuries found in blunt chest trauma. Rib fractures are associated with respiratory dysfunction, lung contusion, pneumonia, chronic chest wall deformities, chronic pain and diminishment in quality of life or work status. The primary goal of management is to prevent or minimize associated complications. Over the last few decades, conservative management has been considered the standard of care for rib and sternal fractures. It is postulated more recently that surgical stabilization of rib fractures (SSRF) in selected patients improves clinical outcomes. Operative and non-operative management has been studied in terms of reduction in morbidity and mortality and reduction in intensive care unit (ICU) or hospital length of stay. The literature suggests advantages of SSRF compared to conservative management for thoracic trauma, specifically flail chest, multiple displaced rib fractures, chest wall deformities, lung herniation, and chronic nonunion. Despite the literature, SSRF is not universally accepted and performed.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. General, Emergency and Trauma Surgery, Pisa University Hospital, Pisa, Italy

    Federico Coccolini

  2. Acute Care Surgery, Sharp Memorial Hospital, San Diego, CA, USA

    Michelle Hamel & John Mayberry

  3. General, Emergency and Trauma Surgery, Bufalini Hospital, Cesena, Italy

    Francesco Favi

  4. St Lukes Wood River Medical Center, Ketchum, ID, USA

    John Mayberry

Authors
  1. Federico Coccolini
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  2. Michelle Hamel
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  3. Francesco Favi
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  4. John Mayberry
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Davis Medical Centre, University of California, Davis, Sacramento, CA, USA

    Joseph M. Galante

  2. Riverside University Health System Medical Center, Comparative Effectiveness and Clinical Outcomes Research Center - CECORC, Riverside, CA, USA

    Raul Coimbra

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Coccolini, F., Hamel, M., Favi, F., Mayberry, J. (2021). Rib Fractures and Chest Wall Injury. In: Galante, J.M., Coimbra, R. (eds) Thoracic Surgery for the Acute Care Surgeon. Hot Topics in Acute Care Surgery and Trauma. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-48493-4_10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-48493-4_10

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