It involves creating an incision along the chest through which the cartilage is removed and the sternum detached. A small bar is inserted underneath the sternum to hold it up in the desired position. The bar is left implanted until the cartilage grows back, typically about six months. The bar is subsequently removed in a simple outpatient procedure; this technique is thus a two-stage procedure.The Ravitch technique is not widely practiced because it is so invasive. It is more often used in older individuals, where the sternum has calcified when the deformity is asymmetrical, or when the less invasive Nuss procedure has proven unsuccessful. Nuss procedure
In 1987, Donald Nuss, based at Childrens Hospital of The Kings Daughters in Norfolk, Virginia, performed the first minimally invasive repair of pectus excavatum (MIRPE)  and presented it much later at a conference in 1997.His procedure, widely known as the Nuss procedure, involves slipping in one or more concave steel bars into the chest, underneath the sternum. The bar is flipped to a convex position so as to push outward on the sternum, correcting the deformity. The bar usually stays in the body for about two years, although many surgeons are now moving toward leaving them in for up to five years. When the bones have solidified into place, the bar is removed through outpatient surgery.
Italian Journal of Psychopathology, 17 (3): 265–276.http://www.gipsicopatol.it/issues/2011/vol17-3/02Spiti.pdf
Agoraphobia Without a History or Panic Disorder May Be Part of the Panic Disorder Syndrome. Journal of Nervous & Mental Disease, 190(9):624-630, September 2002. The Relationship of Agoraphobia and Panic in a Community Sample of Adolescents and Young Adults. External links

Anxiety Disorders Association of America Information for families, clinicians & researchers
Anxiety Disorders Association of Canada Registered Canadian non-profit organization, promotes prevention, treatment & management of anxiety disorders
ANXIETY UK (Formerly the National Phobics Society) Nationally registered charity in the UK; provides information, support & understanding
The Phobic Trust (Of New Zealand) Registered charitable trust in New Zealand; provides information about treatment, education & support to people with anxiety disorders
South African Depression and Anxiety group (National Charity) Counseling, mental health awareness programs: media & public speaking outreach & rural outreach initiatives
Agoraphobia without history of panic disorder at Curlie
Self help guide (NHS Direct)