Spinal deformities among children under 10 years old: a clinical analysis of 41 cases

In order to investigate the number, types, severity and the various treatments of spinal deformity among children under 10 years old, a retrospective survey of registered patients in the scoliosis clinic at the National Taiwan University Hospital was performed. Between August 1982 and December 1988, there were 41 children who had scoliosis with a Cobb angle larger than 10 degrees and the onset was before 10 years of age. This number accounted for 3.8% of all scoliotic patients during the same time period. Of these children, 19 had idiopathic scoliosis (46.3%), 7 with infantile and 12 with juvenile; the other 19 were due to congenital, and the remaining 3 were postradiation, a resection of Wilms' tumor in 2 and neuroblastoma in 1. In the congenital group, hemivertebra (13 patients) outnumbered other causes. Twenty three patients (56%) underwent surgical correction, the rest were either under regular observation (9 patients), bracing (7 patients) or electrical stimulation (2 patients). The average preoperative Cobb angle in the operated groups was much larger, being 67.6 degrees in the infantile; 52.4 degrees in the juvenile; 57 degrees in the congenital; and 62 degrees in the postradiation. For those without an operation, the angles were smaller than 30 degrees. The indications for surgery were that the curvature was in progression, which could not be controlled by conservative means, or that in some congenital cases, the curve had the potential tendency to exacerbate. From the present study, the percentage of scoliosis under 10 years of age was far less than the adolescent group in our clinic.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)