Exercises to Help with Pectus Excavatum Treatment

To supplement the use of the Vacuum Bell, the following exercises may help improve posture,
leading to improved funnel appearance:

Exercise one:
The patient takes a deep breath. Hands are placed behind the head and fingers interlocked. The
elbows are pulled back (extended) as much as possible and the head needs to remain upright. This stretches the front side of the chest and strengthens the upper back muscles.

Exercise two:
Once the posture of exercise one has been properly attained, the patient slowly bends from the
hips forward down to a horizontal position, holds that position for about five seconds, and then
slowly straightens back up again. It is very important that during the exercise the elbows are
maintained in the original extended position. Also, the neck should not be flexed during this
procedure. In other words, when the patient reaches the horizontal position, his spinal cord should be straight and not flexed at the cervical (neck) region. This exercise strengthens the lower back muscles.

Exercise one (by itself) should be done approximately five times per day.

Exercise one and two together should be done two times per day.

Exercise two may be especially difficult to complete. It may take several days (or weeks) until a patient is capable of performing it. (In some cases patients might not be able to perform it at all,
perhaps because the upper body is too long.)

Before attempting these exercises, patients should seek approval from their medical doctor that such exercises are appropriate and safe (e.g., these exercises may not be appropriate for patients with slipped discs in the spinal column or other conditions) If the patient is not allowed to perform these exercises (or should not be capable of performing them), he might ask a physical therapist for substitute exercises.

The final purpose of these exercises is to get a straighter (“better”) posture and to support the
Vacuum Bell's work. Exercise two is especially important to get the lower back
muscles strong enough to maintain the appropriate posture. Some patients are able to achieve this improved posture within one or two months.
For more information on the exercises which will help with Pectus Excavatum please visit www.whatispectusexcavatum.com.