ReviewCureus2017
A Comprehensive Review of the Sternal Foramina and its Clinical Significance.
Review in Cureus, 2017. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 33 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence and morphometry of sternal and xiphoid foramen: a meta-analysis on 16,666 subjects.Surgical and radiologic anatomy : SRA · 2023Pooled it
- Inadvertent placement of a subcutaneous defibrillator lead in the anterior mediastinum through a sternal foramen.HeartRhythm case reports · 2025Article
- Article
- Incidental sternal foramen discovered during the evaluation of a traumatic fracture: a case report.Journal of surgical case reports · 2025Article
- Sternal Foramina Detected by Postmortem Computed Tomography in the Japanese Population: Prevalence and Developmental Patterns.Radiology research and practice · 2025Article
- Revisiting morphology of xiphoid process of the sternum in human: a comprehensive anatomical study.Surgical and radiologic anatomy : SRA · 2024Article
- Article
- Surgical fixation of a traumatic fracture through a congenitally anomalous sternum: a case report.Trauma surgery & acute care open · 2023Article
- Anatomical variations of the sternum: sternal foramen and variant xiphoid morphology in dried adult human sternum in Ethiopia.F1000Research · 2023Observational
- Trifid and ventrally curved xiphoid process with two sternal foramina.Surgical and radiologic anatomy : SRA · 2022Article
- Anatomical variants identified on chest computed tomography of 1000+ COVID-19 patients from an open-access dataset.Clinical anatomy (New York, N.Y.) · 2022Article
- High prevalence of sternal foramina in indigenous Bolivians compared to Midwest Americans and indigenous North Americans (sternal foramina in indigenous Bolivians).Anatomical science international · 2021Article
- Ultrasound and bone: a pictorial review.Journal of ultrasound · 2020Review
- Topographic evaluation of sternal foramen patients with thoracic computed tomography.Surgical and radiologic anatomy : SRA · 2020Article
- Honeycomb sterna: an unusual case of a developmental abnormality in the sternum.Surgical and radiologic anatomy : SRA · 2020Article
- Bifid Xiphoid Process: Case Report and Review.Cureus · 2018Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
A sternal foramen (SF), which arises from the incomplete fusion of the cartilaginous neonatal sternum, is a relatively common anatomical variation found in 2.5% to 13.8 % of all individuals. SFs are usually located at the lower third of the sternal body and their average diameter is 6.5 mm. An SF is subclinical; however, its close proximity to the thoracic organs, i.e., the heart and lungs, entails a risk of serious complications from blinded sternal interventions. Moreover, its presence can lead to misinterpretation of radiological and postmortem findings. The SF is ignored by many physicians and non-physician healthcare providers who must understand its clinical significance in order to optimize patient care. Our aim in this review is to highlight the potential clinical consequences for SF patients, discuss recommendations for performing sternal procedures safely when this anatomical variation is present, and preclude radiological and pathological misinterpretations so that patient care can be improved.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.