USING TITANIUM PLATE OR MESHPLATE FOR CHEST-WALL RECONSTRUCTION - REPORT OF 6 CASES AND LITERATURE-REVIEW

Titanium plate has been widely used in several surgical fields, such a s craniofacial reconstruction and orthopedic prosthesis. This prosthes is has been proved not only with good biocompatibility and mechanical strength, but also with light weight and low radiological interference . From October 1991 to May 1995, 6 patients underwent thoracic cage re construction with titanium plate in our hospital. They included 5 fema les and 1 male, with ages ranging from 26 to 62 years. Four of them su ffered from primary chest wall tumors (2 desmoid tumors, 1 chondrosarc oma, and 1 hemangioma), one had a recurrent chest wall tumor from brea st carcinoma, and one had thoracic hypoplasia. The thoracic cage defec t ranged from 5 x 6 cm to 10 x 15 cm, and 1 to 3 titanium plates were used for the reconstruction. No paradoxical movement or other prosthes is-related complications have occurred during the follow-up period. We conclude that titanium plate is a good material for thoracic cage rec onstruction.