Flail chest: with regard to a case

The flail chest is a severe disease that requires a clear understanding of the principles of management. We describe an illustrative case of this disease and give some advice on the management of the same, with the recommendation early mechanical ventilation, intravenous analgesia, and define the indications for surgical management. We report the case of a male patient with closed thoracic trauma box severe flail chest, pulmonary contusion and traumatic acute respiratory distress syndrome, who received ventilatory support (mechanical ventilation) for 11 days, after which presents normalization indices of oxygenation, respiratory system compliance, and consolidation ad intregrum of multiple sternocostal fractures with only intensive care management.