• Sultan Aldebeyan, Hani Sinno, Asim Makhdom, Jean A Ouellet, and Neil Saran.
• *Department of Surgery, Shriners Hospital for Children, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada †McGill Scoliosis and Spine Research Group; McGill University Health Center, Montreal, Quebec, Canada ‡Department of Orthopedics Surgery, King Fahad Medical City, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia §Division of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Montreal Children's Hospital, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, Canada ¶Department of Orthopedic Surgery, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
• Spine. 2017 Jan 15; 42 (2): E93-E97.

Study DesignSurvey.ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to objectify the burden of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) to better advocate for scoliosis care in the future.Summary Of Background DataAIS is a common spinal deformity that can affect individuals on many levels. Patients with big curves usually seek medical advice for surgical correction of their deformity.MethodsParticipants completed an online questionnaire to help measure the health burden of AIS. Three utility outcome measures were then calculated. These included the visual analog scale, time trade off, and standard gamble. Student t test and linear regression were used for statistical analysis.ResultsOne hundred and ten participants were included in the analysis. The mean visual analog scale, time trade off, and standard gamble scores for AIS were 0.77 ± 0.16, 0.90 ± 0.11, and 0.91 ± 0.13, respectively. Factors such as age, sex, income, and level of education were dependent predictors of utility scores for AIS.ConclusionOur participants demonstrated a significant perceived burden of AIS. If faced with AIS, participants were willing to sacrifice 3.6 years of their lives and undergo a procedure with 9% mortality rate to gain perfect health. Such findings can guide future allocation of resources for better scoliosis care and management.Level Of Evidence4.

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