Repeated chest wall reconstruction after resection of a sternal chondroid chordoma with long-term postoperative infection of the reconstructive material

Abstract

We present the case of a 23-year-old man with a chondroid chordoma of the sternum. The patient underwent chest wall resection, followed by stabilization using a sandwich graft of Prolene mesh and methylmethacrylate, covered with bilateral pedicled M. pectoralis flaps. After adjuvant radiotherapy and two years of follow-up, the patient developed a graft-associated infection. We removed the allogeneic material and the encapsulated abscess, and the wound was conditioned through negative wound pressure therapy. This time, wound closure and chest wall stabilization were achieved with a Prolene mesh covered by a free anterolateral thigh flap. This case demonstrates the importance of carefully considering the material for chest wall stabilization and establishing multidisciplinary cooperation.

Keywords

• Chest wall resection
• chest wall reconstruction
• extra-axial chondroid chordoma
• infection of reconstructive material