Funding outcome

Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS) is a three-dimensional (3D) deformity of the spine. Approximately 30% of patients with AIS will require treatment. Brace treatment is the most effective non-surgical treatment and its goal is to stop curve progression. There is a relatively short window of opportunity during the rapid growth spurt of adolescence for brace treatment to be effective. If brace treatment fails and the curve progresses significantly, surgery will be required. Scoliosis surgery has a life altering impact, and is a complicated operation undertaken with significant risks, including death, paraplegia and a 6-9 month recovery period. The effectiveness of brace treatment depends on 3 factors: 1) remaining growth and curve progression risk, 2) the design of the brace which affects the amount of correction and 3) patients' compliance which is affected by the comfort of the brace and the patients' belief in likelihood of success or failure. Since the remaining growth and the curve risks cannot be controlled, our group has developed tools and processes to improve or optimize the other 2 factors. Preliminary results showed that using ultrasound to assist brace casting provides better in-brace correction and reduced the number of brace adjustments. Furthermore, research has demonstrated that using a computer-aided design/computer-aided manufacturing (CAD/CAM) system to build a spinal brace is as effective as using the traditional plaster mold method, and is more preferable to patients due to reduction of time and improved cleanliness. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to investigate if the effectiveness of brace treatment can be improved by integration of ultrasound imaging, 3D torso imaging and 3D brace printing technologies.