Background: Scoliosis causes changes in the thorax, but it is unclear what type of changes occur in the thoracic profile after scoliosis surgery.
Objective: To investigate changes in rib cage deviation in the postoperative period after adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) surgery.
Methods: Forty-four patients with AIS with a main right thoracic curvature underwent posterior surgical fusion (PSF), and radiological parameters of the spine and thorax were evaluated.
Results: The correction rates of main thoracic curve (MT)-Cobb angle at immediate after surgery and postoperative follow-up (2 years) were 64% and 66%, respectively. At these two postoperative time points, the correction rates of height of thoracic vertebrae 1 to 12 (T1T12) were 10% and 12%; the correction rates of Rib-vertebra angle difference (RVAD) were 59% and 52%; the correction rates of Apical rib hump prominence (RH) were 58% and 76%; while the correction rates of Apical vertebral body-rib ratio (AVB-R) were 23% and 25%, respectively. Statistical analysis showed that all these radiological parameters at the two postoperative time points were significantly different from the preoperative values (p< 0.001). There were significant correlations between MT-Cobb angle and T1-T12 height (p< 0.001), RVAD (p< 0.001), RH (p< 0.001), and AVB-R (p< 0.001).
Conclusions: Posterior spinal fusion appears to be effective at correcting scoliosis, and the correction of rib cage deviation also plays an important role.
Keywords: AIS; Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis; PSF; posterior surgical fusion; thoracic.