Corrective Bracing for Severe Idiopathic Scoliosis in Adolescence: Influence of Brace on Trunk Morphology

Aim. The aim of the work was to study whether wearing a corrective brace by adolescent girls with severe idiopathic scoliosis can influence external shape of the trunk.Methods. Comparison of clinical deformity of two groups of girls matched for age and Cobb angle: group (1) of 23 girls, aged14.9±1.3years, Cobb angle55.0°±6.8°, who refused surgical treatment and have been wearing Chêneau brace for more than 6 months, compared with group (2) of 22 girls, aged14.1±1.8years, Cobb angle59.7°±14.6°never treated with corrective bracing. Clinical deformity was assessed with the Bunnell scoliometer (angle of trunk rotation ATR) and surface topography (posterior trunk symmetry index POTSI and Hump Sum HS).Results.The ATR in the primary curvature was11.9°±3.4°(5°–18°) in group 1 versus15.1°±5.6°(6°–25°) in group 2 (P=0.027). The HS was16.8°±3.8versus19.2°±4.6, respectively,P=0.07. The POTSI value did not differ between groups.Conclusion. Girls with Cobb angle above 45 degrees, who have been subjected to brace treatment, revealed smaller clinical deformity of their back comparing to nontreated girls having similar radiological curvatures.