[Spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis in children and adolescents].

Low back pain is a common cause of lost playing time in young athletes, and spondylolysis is its most common identifiable cause. Despite technological advances in radiology, which can lead to an early diagnosis with better prognosis, progression to spondylolisthesis is sometimes asymptomatic and may not be detected until late stages. There are wide variations, suggesting lack of consensus as regards the objective of treatment, which consists of clinical, radiological, biomechanical or functional improvement. There is also a lack of agreement regarding the ideal conservative treatment, surgical indications and need of slip reduction, and most of the established recommendations are not evidence based. We present a review of literature, which summarizes the current knowledge of spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis in children and adolescents.