Pre-op Exercise for AIS Surgery

Pre-operative Flexibility Exercises for Surgery for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis

The goal of this clinical trial is to determine if pre-operative scoliosis-specific exercises have a beneficial effect on the health outcomes of surgery for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis affects adolescents between the age of 10-18.

The main questions this study aims to answer are:

• Can pre-operative exercises help reduce curve progression prior to surgery?
• Can pre-operative exercises help improve the surgery outcomes, such as a lower number of vertebrae needing fusion, increased curve correction, reduced surgery length, and shorter length of stay in the hospital?
• Can a pre-operative exercise intervention result in a reduction of the cost of surgery?

Researchers will compare the current standard of care (the control group) to an intervention group (with pre-op exercises) to see if pre-op exercises have an effect on these outcomes.

Participants will:

• visit the clinic every 3 months to complete ultrasound imaging scans and questionnaires
• if given an exercise intervention, aim to complete it for roughly 30 minutes a day

Inclusion Criteria:

• diagnosis of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis
• aged 10 to 18
• curve angle >40 degrees
• waitlisted for posterior spinal fusion surgery at the Stollery Hospital

Exclusion Criteria:

• previous surgeries
• current use of scoliosis-specific exercises