[The benefit of braces in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis]

Recently, the Bracing in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Trial made an important contribution to the continuing debate about the effectiveness of bracing for idiopathic scoliosis. The investigators concluded that the use of a brace significantly reduces the risk of progression of the curves beyond 50 degrees, and thus the risk of having to undergo surgery. Unfortunately, their original randomized trial design had to be abandoned at an early stage of the study. Instead, an extra arm was added in which the patients could choose between treatment in a brace and observation. Ultimately, 52% of the study population was included in this non-randomized arm, 71% of whom chose a brace. Apart from this criticism on the performance of the study, one may wonder whether a curve of 50 degrees at the end of growth can really be considered a good result of treatment.