Surgical and perioperative management of flail chest with titanium plates: a French cohort series from a thoracic referral center

BACKGROUND: The development of titanium claw plates has made rib osteosynthesis easy to achieve and led to a renewed interest for this surgery. We report the management of patients referred to the intensive care unit (ICU) of a referral center for surgical rib fracture fixation (SRFF) after chest trauma. METHODS: We performed a retrospective observational cohort study describing the patients’ characteristics and analyzing the determinants of postoperative complications. RESULTS: From November 2013 to December 2016, 42 patients were referred to our center for SRFF: 12 patients (29%) had acute respiratory failure, 6 of whom received invasive mechanical ventilation. The Thoracic Trauma Severity Score (TTSS) was 11.0 [9–12], with 7 [5–9] broken ribs and a flail chest in 92% of cases. A postoperative complication occurred in 18 patients (43%). Five patients developed ARDS (12%). Postoperative pneumonia occurred in 11 patients (26%). Two patients died in the ICU. In multivariable analysis, the Thoracic Trauma Severity Score (TTSS) (OR = 1.89; CI 95% 1.12–3.17; p = 0.016) and the Simplified Acute Physiology Score II without age (OR = 1.17; CI 95% 1.02–1.34; p = 0.024) were independently associated with the occurrence of a postoperative complication. CONCLUSION: The TTSS score appears to be accurate for determining thoracic trauma severity. Short and long-term benefit of Surgical Rib Fracture Fixation should be assessed, particularly in non-mechanically ventilated patients. SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1186/s13019-023-02121-8.