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Background: Traditionally, adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) has not been associated with back pain, but the increasing literature has linked varying factors between pain and AIS and suggested that it is likely underreported., Purpose: Our objective was to investigate factors associated with post-op pain in AIS., Methods: A prospectively collected multicenter registry was retrospectively queried. Pediatric patients with AIS having undergone a fusion with at least 2 years of follow-up were divided into two groups: (1) patients with a postoperative SRS pain score ≤ 3 or patients having a reported complication specifically of pain, and (2) patients with no pain. Patients with other complications associated with pain were excluded., Results: Of 1744 patients, 215 (12%) experienced back pain after postoperative recovery. A total of 1529 patients (88%) had no complaints of pain, and 171 patients (10%) had pain as a complication, with 44 (2%) having an SRS pain score ≤ 3. The mean time from date of surgery to the first complaint of back pain was 25.6 ± 21.6 months. In multivariate analysis, curve type (16% of Lenke 1 and 2 curves vs. 10% of Lenke 5 and 6, p = 0.002) and a low preoperative SRS pain score (no pain 4.15 ± 0.67 vs. pain 3.75 ± 0.79, p < 0.001) were significant. When comparing T2-4 as the upper instrumented vertebrae in a subgroup of Lenke 1 and 2 curves, 9% of patients had pain when fused to T2, 13% when fused to T3, and 18% when fused to T4 (p = 0.002)., Conclusion: 12% of all AIS patients who underwent fusion had back pain after postoperative recovery. The most consistent predictive factor of increased postoperative pain across all curve types was a low preoperative SRS pain score. These slides can be retrieved under Electronic Supplementary Material.

Background/aims: To characterize the impact of cranial asymmetry and age at initiation of therapy on final cranial asymmetry in infants with deformational plagiocephaly treated with helmet orthotics., Methods: We conducted a single-center retrospective review of 45 pediatric patients <12 months of age with deformational plagiocephaly who underwent STARband cranial orthotic helmet treatment. Cranial asymmetry was measured using a 3-dimensional laser surface scanner and defined as a cranial vault asymmetry index (CVAI) >3.5%., Results: Twenty-one patients (47%) were <6 months of age at the start of helmet therapy. A greater initial CVAI or age at therapy initiation correlated with a greater final CVAI (univariate analysis, r = 0.53, p < 0.001; r = 0.42, p = 0.004). Subgroup analysis of 18 patients beginning therapy at 4-5 months of age and 20 patients beginning therapy at 6-8 months of age revealed that only a change in the initial CVAI was associated with a change in the final CVAI (r = 0.43, p = 0.007)., Conclusion: In a comparison of patients who initiated helmet therapy at 4-5 and 6-8 months of age, only cranial asymmetry at the outset of therapy was correlated with final cranial asymmetry (r = 0.43, p = 0.007)., (© 2017 S. Karger AG, Basel.)