The changing pattern of scoliosis treatment due to effective screening.

We evaluated the effects over a ten-year period of a program for early detection and treatment of idiopathic scoliosis in a stable population of 1.5 million people. Seven hundred and twenty-five patients with a scoliosis of more than 20 degrees (as measured with Cobb's method) and who were twenty years old or younger were followed during this period. Although treatment principles remained essentially the same, the percentage of patients who required an operation each year decreased. The magnitude of the ten most severe curves detected each year decreased from an average of 64 degrees to 44 degrees. Efforts to detect scoliosis early have resulted in a threefold increase in the number of patients treated for scoliosis.