Harvest right side. Left sided rib harvest results in left sided chest pain which can cause unnecessary concern for cardiac problems.
Have clear understanding of where the superior and inferior borders of rib cartilage are located. By staying away from superior and inferior border edges, you avoid puncturing the pleura.
Similarly, be aware of how deep the blade is going when you harvest the deep aspect of the rib cartilage. You can injure pleura from the deep aspect of the rib as well. Normally, after the harvest, you still end up with 1-2mm of rib left behind along the deep aspect but it all depends on how the rib graft is harvested.
Use gentle sawing motion to obtain rib cartilage instead of slicing motion.
Rib cartilage should be about 2-2.5 mm in width, 2-3 cm in length and 3-4mm in height. Otherwise, the rib cartilage will curl and not be useful for rigid reconstruction
