Scoliosis in the long term

A study is considered long term if it follows patients for five years. A recent study from the University of Iowa may have set a record--70 years.

Between 1932 and 1948, orthopedists enrolled 117 children with untreated late onset idiopathic scoliosis (LIS). Each child in the study was matched with a child of the same age and sex without scoliosis.

LIS affects 2-3% of all children between the ages of 8 and 16 years old. "Idiopathic" means doctors don't know the cause. Scoliosis is a curvature of the spine. About 60,000 children in this country have LIS.

Over the years, the doctors looked at a number of factors: overall death rate, back pain, breathing symptoms, general functioning, depression, and body-image. The study found some differences. The people with untreated LIS were more likely to have back pain than the controls--61% vs. 35%. However, those with back pain said it was only slight to moderate.

The LIS patients had slightly more body-image concerns than the control group. "The scoliosis patients were only slightly dissatisfied with how they looked," said Lori A. Dolan, MA, one of the researchers. "And if you look at the effects of back pain on their lives and jobs and on the number of children they had, there is little functional difference between patients with scoliosis and the general population."

There were no differences in overall death rates, breathing problems, general functioning, or depression.

"At this stage we don't know what the long-term outcomes are for patients who are treated by conventional methods such as bracing and surgery," said lead researcher Stuart L. Weinstein, MD. "This study's results will be a basis to measure the success of modern treatment methods."

Journal of the American Medical Association, 2/15/03.

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