• (n.) A remodeling or reshaping of the thorax; especially, the operation of removing the ribs, so as to obliterate the pleural cavity in cases of empyema.
Tho`ra·co·plas'ty noun [ Thorax + plasty .] (Medicine) A remodeling or reshaping of the thorax; especially, the operation of removing the ribs, so as to obliterate the pleural cavity in cases of empyema. 
Type: Term Pronunciation: thō′ră-kō-plas-tē Definitions: 1. An operation that corrects deformities of the chest wall; previously used only to designate a procedure designed to reduce the intrathoracic space by removal of portions of the rigid chest wall in cases of tuberculosis or empyema.
Thoracoplasty is plastic surgery of the thorax.