Post-Operative Pain Patterns and Trunk Alignment in Patients Following Surgery for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis...

Area of Science:

• Spinal surgery outcomes research
• Physiotherapy and rehabilitation science
• Skeletal deformities and biomechanics

Background:

• Post-operative rehabilitation protocols for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) fusion lack standardization across institutions.
• Persistent pain and trunk alignment issues following AIS fusion are not well-characterized, impacting patient recovery.
• Current rehabilitation approaches may not adequately address long-term functional outcomes.

Purpose of the Study:

• To establish a consensus-based physiotherapy pathway for post-operative care after AIS fusion.
• To summarize key characteristics of post-operative pain and trunk balance.
• To inform the development of a prospective evaluation program for rehabilitation strategies.

Main Methods:

• Development of the Spinal Intervention Group (SIG) pathway encompassing pre-operative, in-patient enhanced recovery, and post-discharge phases.
• Retrospective analysis of a cohort dataset (n=26) including demographics, fusion details, time since surgery, pain scores (VAS), pain location, comorbidities, and trunk balance.
• Data collection focused on identifying factors influencing recovery and alignment.

Main Results:

• The average Visual Analog Scale (VAS) pain score was 6.2 (median 6.0).
• The mean time elapsed since spinal fusion surgery was 6.0 years.
• Trunk shift, an indicator of alignment deviation, was observed in 54% of the cases studied.

Conclusions:

• Standardizing post-operative rehabilitation through a defined pathway is recommended.
• Implementing structured surveillance for pain and trunk alignment can improve the identification of patient subgroups at higher risk of adverse outcomes.
• This approach will guide future prospective research to optimize AIS fusion outcomes.