Cyanotic Congenital Cardiac Disease and Scoliosis: Pre-Operative Assessment, Surgical Treatment, and Outcomes.

Objective: Congenital heart disease (CHD) is associated with the development of scoliosis. Improvements in cardiac care have extended survival of children with cyanotic CHD which possess a need for correction of scoliosis. There is limited information on spinal care for these patients.

Seizure-induced unilateral posterior dislocation of the shoulder: a diagnosis not to be missed.

A man in his mid-50s with a history of bladder carcinoma presented to the Emergency Department (ED) following a witnessed tonic-clonic seizure. Computed Tomography (CT) scanning of his brain revealed an indeterminate mass lesion in the left parietal region. The patient described bilateral shoulder pain prompting plain film radiographs with axial views, but no obvious abnormality was identified by the ED staff.

Body Mass Hides the Curve: Thoracic Scoliometer Readings Vary by Body Mass Index Value.

Background: Guidelines suggest referral for scoliosis when rib slope (scoliometer measurement, angle of trunk rotation) is ≥7 degrees. We hypothesized that overweight and obese patients would have lower scoliometer measurements compared with normal-weight and underweight patients for a given spinal curvature, causing overweight and obese patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis to present for treatment later and with larger curves. Our goal was to determine the association between scoliometer readings and major curve magnitudes in relation to body mass index (BMI).

Quality of life in children and adolescents undergoing spinal deformity surgery.

Background: Quality of life measurements evaluate surgical results from patients' reported outcomes.

Objective: To assess the impact of spinal deformity treatment using the Scoliosis Research Society-22 questionnaire.

Methods: SRS-22 data was collected in 545 consecutive patients (425 females-120 males) pre-operatively, 6-, 12- and 24-months post-operatively.

Walking Out of the Curve: Thoracolumbar Kyphosis in Achondroplasia.

Background: Thoracolumbar kyphosis (TLK) is common in infants with achondroplasia. Our goals were to examine the natural history of TLK and identify factors associated with persistent TLK.

Methods: We reviewed records of patients with achondroplasia seen by a board-certified orthopaedic surgeon at a tertiary care medical center between 1997 and 2013.