A substantial proportion of subjects with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis display spinal and peripheral proprioceptive deficits.

Aims: Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is considered a multifactorial disease, and proprioceptive deficit (PD) is evident as a potential associated factor. However, existing studies have indicated that only a subgroup of scoliotic adolescents would display PD. The aim of this cross-sectional clinical trial was to investigate the prevalence of, and relationship between, AIS and PD in spinal and peripheral regions.

Methods: A total of 166 participants aged ten to 25 years with AIS were assessed using 3D motion analysis to evaluate their spinal and peripheral proprioceptive abilities. Six proprioceptive tests were used to determine the presence of PD in the trunk, neck, elbow, and knee. PD was characterized by test results that were inferior to the established normative values.

Results: We found that the prevalence of trunk PD was 30.1%, while that of the neck, elbow, and knee was 19.3%, 32.5%, and 32.5%, respectively. We also revealed a correlation between spinal PD and curve magnitudes, suggesting a significant association between trunk PD and the severity of AIS. However, the presence of PD in different body parts was not significantly correlated with one another, indicating that PD may occur in the spine in isolation.

Conclusion: Overall, 50 subjects (30%) with AIS have truncal PD without necessarily the presence of peripheral PD. Moreover, their presence was associated with a larger curve magnitude. Future longitudinal studies are warranted to examine the causal relationship between PD and curve progression in AIS and vice versa.