Improvement of pulmonary function parameters in female patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis by Schroth rehabilitative therapy

Abstract

ObjectiveThis study investigates if an inpatient rehabilitation therapy (brace therapy and Schroth therapy) for six weeks contributes to an improvement in lung function of the patients. DesignRetrospective study. SettingScoliosis rehabilitation clinic “Asklepios Katharina-Schroth-Klinik” (Bad Sobernheim, Germany). ParticipantsIn 253 female patients a lung function examination was performed at entry and at the end of their inpatient rehabilitation stay. Of these, 61 patients underwent Schroth therapy (group 1); 192 patients underwent the combination of brace and Schroth therapy (group 2). InterventionLung function parameters under the influence of Schroth and Schroth and brace therapy within a rehabilitative stay. Main measuresThe parameters of IVC (inspiratory vital capacity), FVC (forced vital capacity), FEV1 (forced expiratory volume in 1 s) and the Tiffeneau index (FEV/FVC) related to patient-specific reference values were evaluated with regard to potential ventilation disorders. ResultsThere were significant improvements for IVC +2.56 %, FVC +3.99 %, FEV1 +2.36 % for the first stay (IVC and FVC 2nd, 3rd stay). The comparison of patients with vs. without additional brace therapy showed no significances. For the long-term analysis the parameters approached the reference values of age-matched, healthy female subjects. The greater the Cobb angle in the thoracic region, the significantly worse almost each of the measured parameters are. ConclusionAn inpatient rehabilitation therapy contributes to an improvement in lung function (IVC, FVC and FEV1). A second, and even a third, follow-up stay still led to a measurable improvement in lung function, albeit to a lesser extent.