Operative treatment of severe scoliosis in osteogenesis imperfecta: results of 20 patients after halo traction and posterior spondylodesis with instrumentation

Correction and stabilisation of the scoliotic spine in osteogenesis imperfecta is difficult. The optimal technique has yet to be determined, since no large series in which a single procedure has been carried out by a single surgeon using a single protocol has yet been described. The charts of 20 patients with osteogenesis imperfecta who had undergone halo gravity traction (HGT) and a posterior spondylodesis with Cotrel-Dubousset (n = 18) or Harrington (n = 2) instrumentation were reviewed. No correction was made at the time of the surgical spondylodesis. The average follow-up was 4.8 years (range 2-10.5 years). The preoperative traction improved the Cobb angle of the scoliosis by 32% (from a mean of 78.5 degrees to a mean of 53.3 degrees) and improved the kyphosis by 24% (from a mean of 56.0 degrees to mean of 42.5 degrees). This correction deteriorated slightly at final follow-up, for both the scoliosis and the kyphosis (mean 57.6 degrees and 44.4 degrees respectively). Few complications were encountered during the HGT period. In 16 cases no complications occurred during the follow-up period. Ambulation and functional ability were upgraded for 7 of 20 patients.