Surgeon Attitudes Toward Physiotherapeutic Scoliosis-Specific Exercises in Adult Patients With Spinal Deformities

Physiotherapeutic scoliosis-specific exercise (PSSE) has proven to be an important treatment for patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. However, there is a lack of understanding of the role of PSSE in older adults with spinal deformity.

An electronic, 14-question survey with questions regarding the use of physical therapy (PT) and PSSE for adult spinal deformity was administered to all Scoliosis Research Society members. Physician location, age, specialty, years in experience, and management preferences were quantified using descriptive analyses.

Of the 98 surgeons who participated in this study, the majority of respondents were from North America (71.1%), and the mean age was 51.87 ± 10.93 years; approximately 98% of respondents were orthopedic surgeons, and 48.0% had been in practice for more than 21 years. Sixty-four percent reported they prescribed PT in their practice, with 52% of respondents often using PT as nonoperative treatment; 21.4%, preoperative; and 40.8% postoperative. The primary reason for PT referral was persistent pain (40.3%), followed by impairments to the patient's balance or gait (34.3%) and difficulty with daily living activities (25.4%). The primary indications for not referring postoperative patients to PT were lack of perceived value from PT (50%), lack of evidence supporting the benefits from PT (31.3%), and a lack of physical therapists appropriately trained for scoliosis (18.8%). Of the respondents, 74% were familiar with PSSE and 66% were comfortable prescribing PSSE postoperatively. In addition, 28% of respondents agreed that >12 weeks postoperation was the ideal time for PSSE referral, followed by 6 to 8 weeks postoperation (26.2%) and immediately postoperation (18%).

The results show that the majority of respondents prescribed PSSE solely for nonoperative treatment. Respondents who did not prescribe PSSE reported skepticism due to a lack of perceived value. This suggests the need for further research into the benefits of PSSE.

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Physiotherapeutic Scoliosis Specific Exercises (PSSE) is an important non-operative treatment for patients with Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS) but is understudied in Adult Spinal Deformity (ASD) patients, suggesting further clinical research. This study demonstrates that only two-thirds of the respondents familiar with PSSE were comfortable prescribing PSSE postoperatively suggesting the need for further research into the effectiveness and benefits of PSSE in ASD patients.