The effect of stretching exercises before orthotic treatment on the immediate in-orthosis correction of the patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: A pilot study.

Background: Stretching exercise is generally used for improving flexibility. However, its application to promote orthotic treatment for patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) remains unknown.

Objective: This study was to explore the effect of pre-orthosis stretching exercises on spinal flexibility and initial in-orthosis correction for the patients with AIS.

Study design: A pilot-controlled study.

Methods: An experimental group (EG) of 13 subjects (10 girls and 3 boys) with AIS allocating to self-stretching exercises and a control group (CG) of 19 AIS subjects (14 girls and 5 boys) with no stretching before orthosis fitting were recruited. The spinal flexibility of the EG was evaluated with an ultrasound imaging system and physical measurements. The initial in-orthosis correction rates between the 2 groups were compared with the independent t test, and the correlation analysis between the spinal flexibility measured from ultrasound images and physical measurement was performed with the Pearson correlation test.

Results: The initial Cobb angle of EG and CG were 25.70° ± 7.30° and 28.09° ± 5.58°, respectively. No significant difference was observed between the initial in-orthosis Cobb angle of EG (11.13° ± 6.80°) and CG (15.65° ± 9.10°) (p = 0.06). However, the spinal flexibility after stretching exercises was improved (p < 0.001), and the spinal flexibility changes measured with ultrasound and physical forward-bending method were significantly correlated (r = 0.57, p < 0.05).

Conclusion: Stretching exercises before orthotic treatment could improve the spinal flexibility but did not cause a better in-orthosis correction. A study with a larger sample size and longer follow-up period should be conducted to investigate the long-term effect of stretching exercises.