Anterior chest wall

Looks like

The front of the chest: breastbone, rib cartilages and front parts of the ribs, covered by the chest muscles and breast.

What it does

Protects the heart and lungs and gives attachment to the chest and shoulder muscles.

Keeping it well

Tender spots on pressing are usually muscle or cartilage; pain with sweating, breathlessness or spreading to the arm needs emergency care.

Its parts

• Right pectoral part of chest
• Left pectoral part of chest
• Anterior thoracic wall

Related conditions

• Acromegaly
• Botulism
• Fibromyalgia
• Fractures
• Fragility fracture
• Frailty & falls in older age
• Heat exhaustion & heatstroke
• Hyperparathyroidism
• Malnutrition & refeeding syndrome
• Muscular dystrophy
• Osteogenesis imperfecta (brittle bone disease)
• Osteomalacia & rickets
• Osteomyelitis (bone infection)
• Osteoporosis
• Paget's disease of bone
• Pleural effusion
• Pneumothorax
• Polymyalgia rheumatica
• Rhabdomyolysis
• Sarcoma
• Sarcopenia
• Tetanus
• Vitamin B1, C and other deficiencies
• Vitamin D deficiency