SCOLIOSIS TREATMENT GUIDELINES

The International Society on Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT) is a multidisciplinary organization with the goal “to foster the most appropriate treatment of scoliosis and spine structural changes, with emphasis on non-operative management.”

A key role that SOSORT undertakes in support of this goal is to disseminates evidence-based information and guidelines among the scientific community and the general population concerning the conservative management of spine structural changes.

In the application below, we provide a summary of the SOSORT guidance for treatment of scoliosis based on a few factors. To use the application, select the age group (Adolescent, Adult, Elderly, Infant, or Juvenile), then select either the Risser Score or pain, then choose the Cobb Angle.

Age Range: Infant 0-3 years; Juvenile 4-9 years; Adolescent 10-17 years; Adult 18-69 years; Elderly 70+

Risser Score OR Pain: Adults must indicate whether they have pain while those under 19 will indicate their Risser score or how much growth is remaining.

Risser Score: The Risser score is a way to describe how much growth a child has remaining. Someone who is pre-pubescent would be Risser 0. Someone who has completed their growth (adults or teens who are done growing) is Risser 5. If you do not know your child’s Risser score you can contact their doctor’s office to get this information from the x-ray or you can estimate it.

• If your child is female and she has started her menses within the past 6 months she may be Risser 1. If she has had her cycles for a year or more she may be Risser 3 or 4. If she has had her cycles for 2 years she is likely Risser 5.
• If your child is male and he is beginning to have secondary sex characteristics, he is likely Risser 1. Males can continue growing into their late teens. You can estimate what percentage of his growth is complete to estimate the Risser score.
  • Risser 0: Has not started puberty
  • Risser 1: 20% of the way done with growth
  • Risser 2: 40% of the way done with growth
  • Risser 3: 60% of the way done with growth
  • Risser 4: 80% of the way done with growth
  • Risser 5: 100% of the way done with growth

Cobb Angle: This is the curve amount on x-ray. If you or your child have more than one curve, use the number of degrees for the larger one for the web application.

Please note that these guidelines have been adapted from the 2011 SOSORT Guidelines which contain a chart that makes it easier for patients and practitioners to know what is the most appropriate minimal to maximal treatment in most cases for people with scoliosis. This web application was developed to make it even more user friendly so that patients and their families can determine what is the recommended treatment for someone with scoliosis based on the best evidence. These guidelines have been updated in the 2016 SOSORT Guidelines. These newer guidelines improve the depth of what we understand and can recommend thanks to the addition of more recent evidence available.