Surgical treatment of sternal dehiscence after sternotomy using Ley prosthesis

Median sternotomy is still the most commonly used approach in cardiac surgery. Closure of the sternal halves is usually performed with stainless wires. Usually this method proves efficient to achieve proper sternal stability without postoperative wound complications. On the other hand in a small number of patients this simple method is not efficient to resist the great spreading forces on the sternal halves leading to sternal instability and other serious complications. We describe successful application of a newly introduced device, the Ley-prosthesis, which may be a very useful treatment for postoperative sternal dehiscence even in complicated cases.