Pediatric thoracic surgery, or chest surgery in children, is a subspecialty within pediatric surgery that addresses diseases and conditions affecting the thorax in children and adolescents. This field combines knowledge of pediatric anatomy, physiology, pathology, and advanced surgical techniques to manage both congenital and acquired thoracic conditions.
Thoracic Surgery
Pediatric thoracic surgery focuses on the diagnosis and surgical treatment of conditions affecting the thoracimediastinumc cavity, which houses the lungs, trachea, esophagus, chest wall, diaphragm, and .
Pediatric thoracic surgeons work in multidisciplinary teams alongside pediatricians, pediatric anesthesiologists, intensivists, and other specialists to ensure comprehensive and safe care.
This medical approach may be required from the neonatal period through adolescence, depending on the condition.
Types of Thoracic Surgery
A wide range of procedures can be performed in pediatric thoracic surgery, generally falling into three main categories.
Congenital anomalies are structural defects present from birth and can significantly affect a child’s respiratory or thoracic function. For example, congenital diaphragmatic hernia, esophageal atresia and tracheoesophageal fistula, or congenital pulmonary malformations. In such cases, the correction of congenital malformations is necessary.
We also provide treatment for acquired injuries that may result from severe infections, trauma, or the development of tumors. For example, thoracic empyema, chest trauma from accidents, or tumors in the mediastinum or lungs.
Chest wall deformities are conditions in which the structure of the thorax affects both appearance and respiratory or cardiovascular function. Examples include pectus carinatum and pectus excavatum.
Surgical options to treat these conditions include pediatric thoracotomy, minimally invasive thoracoscopy, pulmonary lobectomy, and more.
Thoracotomy
One commonly mentioned term in pediatric thoracic surgery is thoracotomy — a surgical procedure involving a large incision in the chest wall to access the organs inside the thoracic cavity.
Unlike minimally invasive procedures like thoracoscopy, thoracotomy provides complete visualization of the affected area, which is often necessary in complex cases.
Among the situations that most frequently require pediatric thoracotomy are lung surgery, severe trauma affecting the lungs or blood vessels, esophageal surgery, and certain infectious diseases where it is necessary to drain intrathoracic abscesses or severe empyemas that have not responded adequately to conservative treatments.
Pediatric thoracic surgery includes both minimally invasive procedures and complex open surgeries to treat life-threatening conditions that pose serious risks to pediatric patients’ health.
Pediatric Thoracic Surgeons Near Me
At the ABC Medical Center’s Pediatrics Center, we have a team of highly trained pediatric thoracic surgery specialists dedicated to providing comprehensive and personalized care for all your surgical needs.
Our pediatric thoracic surgeons in Mexico City are committed to your well-being and use the latest technology and most advanced treatments to manage conditions such as correction of congenital thoracic malformations, resection of pulmonary tumors in children, pediatric pulmonary lobectomies, and more.
Fuentes:
Shriners Children, Cigna, Scielo
