A new study published in Spinal Deformity examines the national trends for surgical treatment of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.
There were 60,108 children participating in the study — 46,256 girls, 13,776 boys and 76 who didn't specify gender. The children underwent surgery for AIS from 1998 to 2011 and their data was catalogued in the Nationwide Inpatient Sample.
The researchers found:
1. The number of operations increased over time and the majority of the procedures were thoracic fusions.
2. Among patients who underwent thoracic fusions, posterior operations increase significantly. At the same time the anterior only and anterior/posterior operation volume decreased significantly. The number of anterior operations for lumber fusions were down, but not as steeply as the thoracic procedures.
3. Over the study period, autogenous bone graft, including iliac crest, increased. At the same time, there were significant decreases in alternative fusion agent use.
4. The number of patients who underwent thoracoplasty decreased while the patients who received osteotomy increased.
5. Among all the patients, the complication rate was 3.7 percent and the researchers found blood transfusion, infection and neural injury rates were similar over the study period. However, the researchers did find the device-related complications were up significantly by 2011.
6. The average length of hospital stay after surgery decreased significantly from 1998 to 2011, but the total average cost was up significantly.