F-2-24-07
UNDERARM BRACE FOR IDIOPATHIC SCOLIOSIS
Yoshihiro Semoto M.Abe, R.Kosaka, Y.Ichimura, Y. Shimada, J.Yamaguchi (Osaka Medical College, Osaka, Japan)
A Osaka Medical College type brace (OMC brace) for fight thoracic curve is composed of the main part, which is made of Sub-ortholen, and a metal upright along the left body side, which controls the balance of the entire spine.
Six hundred and nine cases of idiopathic scoliosis were investigated. The average age at the start of our brace treatment was 12 years and 9 months. Their average age at the time of the follow-up was 17 years and 2 months.
The average percent correction obtained in this brace is 35.5%. The most superior response was obtained in thoracolumber curve, next in thoracic curve, then the correction in double major curve follows those.
In the treatment of scoliosis, adequate principle, planning and practice are equal requested. Short brace is not also necessarily easy to fabricate and fit, but we believe this brace can be one of the valuable armaments to get through the treatment of scoliosis. The OMC brace has been successfully used for idiopathic curves in our clinic.
F-2-24-08
PSYCHOLOGICAL EFFECTS OF BRACE THERAPY ON PATIENTS WITH IDIOPATHIC SCOLIOSIS
Shunji Matsunaga, Takashi Sakou (Kagoshima University, Kagoshima, Japan)
Purpose: Brace therapy has played an important role in the conservative treatment of scoliosis. However, brace therapy may cause patients great emotional distress. We performed psychological investigation to clarify psychological effects of the brace treatment for idiopathic scoliosis.
Method: Forty-four girls with idiopathic scoliosis ranged from 9 to 14 years (mean: 12.4 years) were subjected to this study. Twenty-seven patients underwent brace therapy and seventeen patients were periodically examined without brace therapy. All patients were examined by Maudsley's personality inventory before treatments and every 6 months after wearing brace.
Results: In the brace therapy group, only 3 patients (12.5%) remained normal until the last test and twenty-one patients (87.5%) were moved into the abnormal range although they had previously been rated in the normal range. 93% of the patients in the non-brace group remained normal. The chronological changes in the results of Maudsley inventory revealed a greater shift from the normal type to abnormal type in the brace therapy group than in the non-brace therapy group.
Conclusion: Brace therapy exerts a tremendous psychological stress on young adults. Any pre-existing psychological problems need to be considered before using brace.
