Post-Operative Pain Patterns and Trunk Alignment in Patients Following Surgery for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS): From Pathway to Patterns.

BACKGROUND

Post-operative rehabilitation following AIS fusion varies across centres and persistent pain and trunk alignment deviations remain under-characterised.

OBJECTIVES

To present a consensus-based post-operative physiotherapy pathway and summarise post-operative pain and trunk balance characteristics to inform a prospective evaluation programme.

METHODS

The SIG pathway was developed across pre-operative, in-patient enhanced recovery, and post-discharge phases. A retrospective cohort dataset (n=26) captured demographics, fusion descriptors, time since surgery, VAS pain, pain region, co-morbidities, and trunk balance.

RESULTS

Mean VAS was 6.2 (median 6.0); mean time since fusion was 6.0 years; trunk shift was recorded in 54% of cases.

CONCLUSION

Standardising rehabilitation via a pathway and embedding structured pain-alignment surveillance may improve identification of higher-risk subgroups and guide prospective outcomes research.