BRACING FOR SCOLIOSIS FOUND LESS
EFFECTIVE FOR OVERWEIGHT TEENS
A recent study at Johns Hopkins has shown that bracing treatment for scoliosis is significantly less effective for teenagers who are overweight. Currently bracing is the only non-operative treatment for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis that is advocated by the spine community.
In the study, which included 276 adolescents with scoliosis, the teenagers who were overweight were 2.5 times more likely than those of normal weight teens to have curvatures progress despite wearing a TLSO brace. 44% of the overweight teens eventually needed surgery to correct the curve.
The findings of this study suggest that extra body weight may compromise the braces ability to exert the biomechanical forces on the spine necessary to prevent curve progression.
Roseville Health and Wellness Center