Adolescents' Experiences of Idiopathic Scoliosis in the Presurgical Period: A Qualitative Study.

Objective: Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is a sideways curvature of the spine that can progress severely during adolescent development and require surgical intervention. This qualitative study was conducted to explore the psychosocial experiences of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis during the presurgical stage of treatment.

Methods: Fourteen adolescents with moderate-to-severe AIS aged 12-17 years participated in semistructured interviews and data were analyzed using inductive reflexive thematic analysis.