Skip to main content

Costal Cartilage Injury

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Management of Chest Trauma
  • 675 Accesses

Abstract

Costal cartilage injuries are frequently overlooked and yet can cause significant long-term morbidity. The taxonomy has been variable and failed to address the anatomic relationships of the costal cartilages. Management has been generally conservative, although this is changing as the evidence base increases. This is reliant on accurate coding of costal cartilage injuries, which is currently lacking, and the literature is based on case reports and small case series, with no prospective interventional clinical trials. This chapter addresses anatomy and taxonomy, investigation and management of costal cartilage injuries, including those of the costal cartilages, costochondral, sternochondral and interchondral joints, and injuries related to the costal margin.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 119.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 159.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 219.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

References

  1. Nummela MT, Bensch FV, Pyhältö TT, Koskinen SK. Incidence and imaging findings of costal cartilage fractures in patients with blunt chest trauma: a retrospective review of 1461 consecutive whole-body CT examinations for trauma. Radiology. 2018;286(2):696–704.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Turk F, Kurt AB, Saglam S. Evaluation by ultrasound of traumatic rib fractures missed by radiography. Emerg Radiol. 2010;17(6):473–7.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Subhas N, Kline MJ, Moskal MJ, et al. MRI evaluation of costal cartilage injuries. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2008;191(1):129–32.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  4. Edwards JG, Clarke P, Pieracci F, et al. chest wall injury society: an international delphi consensus survey to agree definitions for multiple rib fractures. J Trauma Acute Care Surg. 2020;88(2):e40. https://doi.org/10.1097/TA.0000000000002282.

  5. Clarke P, Simpson R, Dorman JR, et al. Determining the clinical significance of the chest wall injury society taxonomy for multiple rib fractures. J Trauma Acute Care Surg. 2019;87(6):1282–8. https://doi.org/10.1097/TA.0000000000002519.

  6. Zotzmann V, Rilinger J, Lang CN, et al. Early full-body computed tomography in patients after extracorporeal cardiopulmonary resuscitation (eCPR). Resuscitation. 2020;146:149–54.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Gooseman MR, Rawashdeh M, Mattam K, et al. Unifying classification of transdiaphragmatic intercostal hernia and other costal margin injuries. Eur J Cardiothorac Surg. 2019;56(1):150–8.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Elliott DS, Newman KJH, Forward DP, et al. A unified theory of bone healing and nonunion: BHN theory. Bone Joint J. 2016;98-B(7):884.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

  9. Forman JL, Kent RW. The effect of calcification on the structural mechanics of the costal cartilage. Comput Methods Biomech Biomed Engin. 2014;17(2):94–107. https://doi.org/10.1080/10255842.2012.671307. Epub 2012 Apr 19.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Gao E, Li Y, Zhao T, et al. Simultaneous surgical treatment of sternum and costal cartilage fractures. Ann Thorac Surg. 2019;107(2):e119–20. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.athoracsur.2018.06.044.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  11. Prins JTH, Wijffels MME. Operative treatment of multiple costochondral dislocations in a patient with severe rib fractures and a flail chest following trauma. BMJ Case Rep. 2021;14(3):e239511. https://doi.org/10.1136/bcr-2020-239511.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  12. Sollender GE, White TW, Pieracci FM. Fracture of the costal cartilage: presentation, diagnosis, and management. Ann Thorac Surg. 2019;107(4):e267–8. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.athoracsur.2018.08.076. Epub 2018 Oct 22.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  13. Schulz-Drost S, Luber AM, Simon K, et al. Elastic stable chest repair and its hybrid variants in 86 patients with pectus excavatum. J Thorac Dis. 2018;10(10):5736–46. https://doi.org/10.21037/jtd.2018.09.148.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  14. Claydon O, Benamore R, Belcher E. Outcomes of chest wall fixation in cardiopulmonary resuscitation-induced flail chest. Interact Cardiovasc Thorac Surg. 2020;31(3):417–8. https://doi.org/10.1093/icvts/ivaa118.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  15. Drahos A, Fitzgerald M, Ashley D, Christie DB 3rd. Chest wall stabilization with rib plating after cardiopulmonary resuscitation. J Thorac Dis. 2019;11(Suppl 8):S1103–5. https://doi.org/10.21037/jtd.2018.12.51.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  16. Smith-Singares E. Thoracolaparoscopic management of a traumatic subacute transdiaphragmatic intercostal hernia. Second case reported. Trauma Case Rep. 2020;28:100314. Published 2020 May 29. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.tcr.2020.100314.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  17. Cerfolio RJ, Price TN, Bryant AS, et al. Intracostal sutures decrease the pain of thoracotomy. Ann Thorac Surg. 2003;76(2):407–11; discussion 411-2. https://doi.org/10.1016/s0003-4975(03)00447-8.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  18. Mary Parks R, Jadoon M, Duffy J. Nontraumatic rupture of the costal margin: a single-center experience. Asian Cardiovasc Thorac Ann. 2019;27(2):105–9. https://doi.org/10.1177/0218492318823367.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  19. Sinopoli J, Strong A, Kroh M, et al. Spontaneous chest wall herniation in centrally obese patients: a single-center experience of a rare problem. Am Surg. 2021;87(2):222–7. https://doi.org/10.1177/0003134820950280. Sep 15:3134820950280.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  20. Meinberg E, Agel J, Roberts C, et al. Fracture and dislocation classification compendium. J Orthop Trauma. 2018;32(1 Suppl):S161–5.

    Google Scholar 

  21. Moore EE, Malangoni MA, Cogbill TH, et al. Organ injury scaling IV: thoracic vascular, lung, cardiac and diaphragm. J Trauma. 1994;36:229–300.

    Google Scholar 

  22. Moore EE, Cognill TH, Jurkovich GJ, et al. Organ injury scaling III: chest wall, abdominal vascular, ureter, bladder and urethra. J Trauma. 1992;33:337–9.

    Article  CAS  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to John G. Edwards .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Edwards, J.G. (2022). Costal Cartilage Injury. In: Shiroff, A.M., Seamon, M.J., Kaplan, L.J. (eds) Management of Chest Trauma. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06959-8_7

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-06959-8_7

  • Published:

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-031-06958-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-031-06959-8

  • eBook Packages: MedicineMedicine (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics