Trunk Growth in Early-Onset Idiopathic Scoliosis Measured With Biplanar Radiography

Cross-sectional and longitudinal retrospective study.

To measure thoracic dimensions and volume during growth in early-onset idiopathic scoliosis (EOIS) patients and to compare them to a population of asymptomatic adults and to the previous literature.

Data on trunk growth for scoliotic children between 6 and 14 years of age is sparse in the literature.

Thirty-six patients (29 girls and 7 boys, between 3 and 14 years old, average Cobb angle 33°±15°) were included, all with a minimum two-year follow-up. Sixty-one asymptomatic girls and 54 asymptomatic adults were included as control groups. All subjects underwent biplanar radiography and 3D reconstruction of the spine, pelvis, and rib cage. EOIS patients repeated their radiologic examination every six months. Cobb angle, rib cage volume, anteroposterior and transverse diameters, thoracic index, thoracic perimeter, pelvic incidence, and T1-T12 and T1-S1 distance were calculated. Reproducibility of measurement was assessed.

Measurement reliability in such young patients was comparable to previous studies in adolescents and adults. Geometrical parameters of EOIS patients increased linearly with age. For instance, rib cage volume in girls with EOIS increased from 2200 cm³ at six to seven years of age to 4100 cm³ at 13-14 years (65% of adult values, 294 cm³/y). Comparison with asymptomatic girls showed that EOIS could affect growth spurt. Longitudinal analysis on a cohort of six girls who had a follow-up of six years confirmed the cross-sectional data.

In this longitudinal and cross-sectional study, trunk growth between 3 and 14 years of age was characterized, for the first time, with biplanar radiography and 3D reconstruction. The results can be useful to estimate patient growth and thus have potential application in the surgical planning of EOIS patients.

Level II, retrospective study.