6-Year Scoliosis Clinical Outcomes Review

Real-World Clinical Experience With Our Conservative Scoliosis Treatment Approach

At Barr Chiropractic and Scoliosis Center, we believe patients and families deserve realistic information when considering conservative scoliosis care.

To better understand how patients responded to our treatment approach, we reviewed clinical outcomes collected over a six-year period involving 113 scoliosis patients in Phoenix AZ.

Our goal was simple: to evaluate measurable changes in spinal curvature using Cobb-angle measurements and to better understand how patients responded over time.

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113 PATIENTS | 6 YEARS OF CLINICAL EXPERIENCE in Phoenix AZ

Who Was Included?

The clinical review included:

• 113 total patients
• 43 patients under age 18
• 70 adult patients age 18 and older
• 92 females and 21 males
• Patients with thoracic and lumbar scoliosis
• An average starting curve of approximately 30°, representing moderate scoliosis in the study population

Most patients—91.2%—were treated using a combination of bracing and scoliosis table therapy.

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What Did We Find?

Measurable Curve Improvement Was Observed

Among the patients who had completed care at the time of the analysis:

62.5% demonstrated improvement in their Cobb angle

The remaining 37.5% were categorized as having no change.

These findings are important because the goal of conservative scoliosis management is not necessarily complete correction in every patient. Depending on the individual, goals may include measurable curve improvement, management of progression, and improved spinal function.

Every scoliosis case is different, and results cannot be predicted or guaranteed.

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Average Cobb-Angle Improvement

Among the patient subsets for whom percentage-improvement data were available, the clinical review found average Cobb-angle improvements of approximately:

• 30.6% — Primary Thoracic Curves
• 25.8% — Lumbar Curves

A secondary thoracic curve group demonstrated greater average percentage improvement; however, the number of patients with percentage-improvement data in that subgroup was very small, so we do not use that figure to represent what a typical patient should expect.

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Children and Adults Both Demonstrated Improvement

One of the interesting findings from our clinical review was that improvement patterns were observed in both children and adults.

Patients Under Age 18

Average percentage improvement among the available patient subsets was approximately:

• 30.2% — Thoracic curves
• 25.4% — Lumbar curves

Patients Age 18 and Older

Average percentage improvement among the available patient subsets was approximately:

• 30.7% — Primary thoracic curves
• 26.1% — Lumbar curves

The analysis did not find a statistically significant difference in percentage improvement between the child and adult groups for the primary thoracic and lumbar curves.

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What Do These Percentages Mean?

Percent improvement refers to the change in the patient’s measured Cobb angle, the standard measurement used to quantify scoliosis curvature.

For example, reducing a spinal curve does not require the spine to become perfectly straight for a measurable improvement to have occurred.

Our clinical experience reinforces an important principle:

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Scoliosis treatment is about the individual patient—not simply a percentage.

Age, skeletal maturity, curve location, curve severity, flexibility, treatment compliance, bracing response, and other individual factors can influence the outcome.

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What Happened Over Time?

The clinical data showed that bracing produced substantial immediate in-brace correction in the patients for whom those measurements were available.

Some of that initial correction was lost after the patient was out of the brace and during subsequent follow-up.

At one year, statistically significant reductions relative to baseline were observed in the overall analysis for both the primary thoracic and lumbar curves.

Longer-term two-year data were available for substantially fewer patients, making those results less certain.

This is one reason we believe scoliosis treatment should be evaluated individually and monitored over time rather than making promises based upon a single number.

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Why Treatment Participation Matters

Scoliosis care requires a commitment from both the patient and the clinical team.

In our review:

71.7% of patients were classified as compliant with therapy.

At the time the data were analyzed, some patients had completed treatment, some remained actively in care, and others had discontinued care.

This is important when interpreting the results because not every patient in the original 113-patient group had completed the full course of treatment at the time of analysis.

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Our Philosophy

We Don’t Promise Perfect Spines.

We Work to Create the Best Opportunity for Improvement.

No responsible scoliosis provider can guarantee that a curve will be corrected.

Our approach is designed to provide patients with an individualized conservative treatment option based on their curve characteristics, clinical findings, age, goals, and other relevant factors.

The results of our six-year clinical review give us valuable information about how patients treated through our approach have responded—but they do not predict the result of any individual patient.

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Is Our Approach Appropriate for You or Your Child?

The first step is a comprehensive scoliosis evaluation.

We will evaluate the curve pattern and severity, review available X-rays and imaging, discuss previous treatment, and determine whether conservative scoliosis treatment may be appropriate.

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Schedule a Scoliosis Evaluation

Barr Chiropractic and Scoliosis Center

Individual results vary. The information presented above summarizes an internal clinical outcomes review and should not be interpreted as a guarantee or prediction of treatment results. Most patients included in the review received a combination of bracing and scoliosis table therapy. Treatment recommendations are individualized based on clinical findings.

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Interested in the Detailed Data?

For patients, physicians, physical therapists, chiropractors, and other healthcare professionals who would like to review the methodology, statistical analysis, tables, and complete findings:

Would you like to review the complete study? Call our office at (480) 596-3918, and we’ll be happy to send you a complimentary copy of our full 6-Year Scoliosis Clinical Outcomes Study.