The influence of the degree of spine curvature on the quality of life assessment among patients treated surgically with the Cotrel-Dubousset method.

Unlabelled: Physical appearance and psychomotor ability rank high in the hierarchy of values accepted by children and teenagers. Therefore Idiopathic Scoliosis (IS), which is accompanied by the dysfunction of locomotive organ and often requires troublesome treatment, may lead to poor body image and frustration. Other common effects are a low self-esteem, identity problems and depressive symptoms.

Method: Prospective examination was done in two independent groups of IS patients treated in one of Szczecin's clinic. The first group of 35 patients was examined twice: after being selected for surgery and 12 months after surgery. The second group of 52 patients was examined after a minimum of two years from operation. Research tools consisted of: personal data questionnaire, the assessment form of the clinical state and the Scoliosis Research Society (SRS)-22. The results were statistically analyzed using STATISTICA 5 software. Pearson's linear correlation coefficients and Spearman's rank correlation coefficients were calculated to determine the relationship between the pairs of variables.

Results/findings: Preoperatively, the Cobb angle of thoracic curves was found to significantly correlate only with the Physical Activity (rs = -0.41, p<0.02) and Self-Image (rs = - 0.51, p<0.002). Postoperatively, a positive correlation with statistical significance was observed only with correction values in thoracic section with total scores of the SRS-22 (p<0.03) in the 24-month period.

Conclusions: 1. Clinical assessment appears insufficient to decide how advanced the disease is and what the treatment results are. 2. The degree of spinal curvature, especially in the postoperative period, have little effect on quality of patients' lives. 3. Studies with the use of the SRS-22 HRQL instrument suggest that other non-clinical factors may affect the quality of life assessment.