Chest wall surgery - Volume 20-4

This issue of the Thoracic Surgery Clinics is dedicated to a technical aspect of the clinical practice with which surgeons have become increasingly familiar through the years.

The term "chest wall surgery" refers to a wide variety of procedures, varying from a straightforward removal of one rib or the correction of a congenital malformation to an extremely complex resection and subsequent reconstruction of the chest wall primarily aimed at preserving geometrical and functional integrity.

As such, chest wall surgery can really offer scenarios where the creativity and the technical skills are emphasized to an unprecedented level in the thoracic surgical practice.