How VEPTR Helps Patients with Thoracic Insufficiency Syndrom (T.I.S.)

Advances in medical technology continue to open new possibilities for more effective treatments for all types of conditions. One of these innovations has dramatically improved care for children with thoracic insufficiency syndrome (TIS), a congenital condition in which severe deformities of the chest, spine, and ribs prevent normal breathing, lung growth, and lung development.

In the past, treatment for this complex condition involved permanent spinal fusions and rib separation, but the development of the Vertical Expandable Prosthetic Titanium Rib (VEPTR) changed all that.

What is VEPTR?

The VEPTR is a curved metal rod that’s attached to a child’s ribs near the spine using hooks on both ends of the device. VEPTR helps straighten the spine, separate the ribs, and support the chest—allowing the lungs to operate and grow. The length of the VEPTR can be expanded or contracted as the patient grows, with adjustments made approximately every six months through a small incision in the patient’s back (typically during outpatient surgery).

The goal of VEPTR is to allow children with TIS (and its associated problems), to live a normal life—to be able to breathe, play, and enjoy physical activity. The outcomes have been positive. Following a VEPTR procedure, patients usually experience increased lung expansion, easier breathing, reduced discomfort, improved quality of life, and a slowing progression—or even reversal—of chest deformities. VEPTR also indirectly corrects and/or improves scoliosis in many cases. Primary Children’s patients who have undergone a VEPTR procedure have greatly improved the quality of their lives. Many of our patients can now do things like skiing, rock climbing, and any number of physical activities that, without VEPTR as a treatment option, would most likely have been impossible.

VEPTR Pioneer and Industry Leader - Dr. John T. Smith

Dr. John T. Smith, one of Primary Children’s most distinguished pediatric orthopedic surgeons, was a VEPTR pioneer. His national reputation for spine care led to Primary Children’s being selected as one of seven medical centers in the United States to take part in the initial evaluation study of the device in 2002. Since then, Dr. Smith and other physicians at Primary Children’s have initiated treatment with the VEPTR device on over 100 patients—making the hospital one of the busiest and most experienced VEPTR sites in the country. Dr. Smith has become such a VEPTR expert that he was part of the design and development team for VEPTR 2, an upgrade that made the device more modular and gave physicians the ability to provide patients with enhanced treatment options. He has traveled all over the United States and around the world, including visits to New Zealand, Australia, China, Japan, and many European countries, to train physicians on VEPTR.

Of course, the push continues for better and better technologies, and at Primary Children’s Hospital we are constantly searching for more effective treatments. There is some exciting VEPTR news to report: a new-and-improved device is in the works. VEPTR 3 will use magnets to expand the length of the device, thus reducing or eliminating the need for follow-up surgeries to lengthen the titanium rods.

About the Author

Primary Children's Hospital

Primary Children’s Hospital ranks among the best children's hospitals. Located in scenic Utah, everything in our hospital is focused on providing the best care for children. For more than 90 years, we have been committed to helping children, families, and communities across the western United States.

http://primarychildrens.org

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