Integrating basic body awareness therapy with scoliosis-specific exercise for trunk proprioception in adolescent...

To investigate whether integrating Basic Body Awareness Therapy (BBAT) into a physiotherapeutic scoliosis-specific exercises (PSSE) program improves trunk proprioception in individuals with AIS.

In this randomized, parallel-group controlled trial, 38 individuals with AIS (aged 10-17 years) were randomly allocated to the BBAT or the control group. The control group received PSSE only, whereas the BBAT group received a combined program of PSSE and BBAT for 16 weeks. Trunk proprioception was assessed using trunk repositioning tests at 15° and 30° and the Neutral Lumbar Positioning (NLP) Test. Cobb angles and axial trunk rotation (ATR) were measured. Outcomes were analyzed using ANCOVA adjusted for baseline values with Holm correction for multiple comparisons.

After adjustment for baseline values and Holm correction, trunk proprioceptive outcomes statistically favored the BBAT group at 15° (adjusted p < 0.001), 30° (adjusted p = 0.045), and in the NLP test (adjusted p < 0.001). However, none of the adjusted between-group differences exceeded the corresponding study-derived MDC₉₅ values; therefore, although statistically significant, the clinical relevance of the findings remains uncertain. No significant between-group differences were observed in Cobb angle or ATR (p > 0.05).

A combined PSSE-BBAT program was associated with statistically greater improvements in trunk proprioception than PSSE alone, although the clinical significance of these changes remains uncertain. BBAT may be considered a supportive body-awareness component within exercise-based scoliosis rehabilitation, but these findings reflect the combined intervention structure rather than the isolated additive effect of BBAT.