title: Current principles in the nonoperative management of structural adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.
abstract: Physical therapists routinely identify and manage adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis. Therefore, it is essential that we maintain a current understanding of both the condition and the treatment principles. This paper includes both a discussion of the personal impact on those left untreated and a review of current concepts concerning the following: the pathological findings associated with structural scoliosis; the prevalence of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis; and the evaluation techniques, the nonoperative treatment procedures, and the long-term treatment results for idiopathic scoliosis. The final section presents research topics relevant to the etiology, the detection, and the treatment of moderate scoliotic curves.
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D001915:Braces; D004599:Electric Stimulation Therapy; D005081:Exercise Therapy; D006801:Humans; D008722:Methods; D011187:Posture; D012600:Scoliosis / Q000145:classification / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy