Stress level and quality of life of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis during brace treatment.

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to evaluate the effect of brace treatment on the stress level and quality of life (QoL) of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 194 adolescent individuals were evaluated in two groups: the adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) group with 97 patients (20 males, 77 females; mean age: 13.9±1.8 years; range 10 to 18 years) and the control group with 97 age-and sex-matched participants (20 males, 77 females; mean age: 14.3±1.7 years; range 10 to 18 years) with no spinal deformity. The AIS group wore the Milwaukee brace or a thoracolumbosacral orthosis based on the location of the apical vertebra. All participants of the AIS group filled the Persian versions of the revised Scoliosis Research Society 22-item questionnaire (SRS-22r), the eight-item Bad Sobernheim Stress Questionnaire (BSSQ)-Deformity, and BSSQ-Brace. The control group only answered the first 20 items (subtotal items) of the SRS-22r. The brace-related QoL and stress level were assessed based on sex, brace, and deformity types.

RESULTS

The subtotal score of the SRS-22r in the AIS group was significantly lower than the control group (p<0.001). There was a significant difference between deformity-related stress and brace-related stress (p<0.001). Regarding the type of treatment, there were no significant differences in QoL and stress level between the Milwaukee brace and thoracolumbosacral orthosis groups (p>0.05). Moreover, there was a weak correlation between the BSSQ-Brace and the self-image, mental-health scores, and the total scores of the SRS-22r (r=0.39 to 0.42, p<0.001); the low level of perceived stress was associated with a high level of perceived QoL.

CONCLUSION

The stress due to brace treatment can decrease function/activity and self-image of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis.