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Published on: October 16, 2013
Prevalence of scoliosis in cystic fibrosis
Valentina Fainardi1, Sergio D Koo, Simon P G Padley
1Department of Paediatric Respiratory Medicine, Royal Brompton Hospital, London, UK.
Insights
Children with cystic fibrosis (CF) do not have a higher prevalence of scoliosis than the general pediatric population. This study found a 2.2% prevalence, similar to the 0.5-3.2% in the general population.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Orthopedics
- Pulmonology
- Medical Research
Background:
- Idiopathic scoliosis affects 0.5-3.2% of children.
- Previous research suggested a higher scoliosis prevalence in cystic fibrosis (CF) patients.
- This study investigates scoliosis prevalence in CF children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To determine the prevalence of scoliosis in pediatric patients with cystic fibrosis.
- To compare scoliosis rates in CF patients to the general pediatric population.
Main Methods:
- Retrospective review of chest X-rays from 319 CF patients.
- Measurement of Cobb angle to identify spinal lateral curvature.
- Scoliosis defined as a Cobb angle exceeding 10°.
Main Results:
- Scoliosis was identified in 7 patients (2.2%) with a mean age of 14.5 years.
- Scoliosis onset occurred between 5 and over 10 years of age.
- All identified curves were thoracic with right convexity.
Conclusions:
- The prevalence of scoliosis in CF patients (2.2%) is similar to the general pediatric population (0.5-3.2%).
- CF patients with scoliosis exhibit the same female and right-sided predilection as the general population.
Background:
The prevalence of idiopathic scoliosis in the general pediatric population is reported to be between 0.5% and 3.2%. Previous studies have reported an increased prevalence of scoliosis in children with cystic fibrosis (CF).
Hypothesis:
The prevalence of scoliosis in CF children is greater than in the normal population.
Methods:
Chest X-rays of 319 patients attending the Royal Brompton CF Centre were reviewed. The Cobb angle of any spinal lateral curvature was measured. Scoliosis was defined as a Cobb angle of more than 10°.
Results:
Median age of the whole group of patients was 10.9 years (range 1.1-18 years), 53% were females. Seven patients (2.2%) had radiological signs of scoliosis, their mean age was 14.5 ± 2.3 years (range: 11.5-18 years), 5 were females. Age at onset of scoliosis was between 5 and 10 years for three patients and over 10 years for the others. All the curves were thoracic and with right convexity: apices between T7 and T9 for the single curves (n = 5) and between T4 and T5 (n = 2) for the double curves.
Conclusion:
CF patients showed a similar prevalence of scoliosis as in the normal population (2.2% vs. 0.5-3.2%). There was the same gender (female) and side (right-sided) predilection as in normal population.
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