ObjectiveTo explore the surgical treatment of deep chest wall infection, improve the cure rate and reduce the recurrence rate.MethodsThe clinical data of 655 patients with deep chest wall infection treated in Yanda Hospital and Beijing Royal Integrative Medicine Hospital from June 2015 to June 2020 were retrospectively analyzed. There were 450 males and 205 females, aged 55.6±12.8 years. There were 8 patients with chest wall infection after tumor necrosis, 15 patients after radiotherapy and 632 patients after thoracotomy (612 patients after cardiovascular surgery and 20 patients after general thoracic surgery). Among them, 649 patients underwent debridement and reconstruction of chest wall defect with muscle flap.ResultsThe average operation time was 95±65 min, the average intraoperative blood loss was 180±100 mL, and the average postoperative hospital stay was 13±6 d. Of the 649 patients who underwent muscle flap reconstruction after debridement, 597 patients recovered within 2 weeks, and the primary wound healing rate was 94.4%. Twenty-three (3.5%) patients died. The median follow-up time was 25 (2-40) months. Among the remaining 632 patients, 20 recurred, with a recurrence rate of 3.1% (20/632).ConclusionPedicled muscle flap after thorough debridement of deep chest wall infection is one of the best methods to repair chest wall defect with pedicled muscle flap.