title: Epidemiology of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis.
abstract: Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis is a common disease with an overall prevalence of 0.47-5.2 % in the current literature. The female to male ratio ranges from 1.5:1 to 3:1 and increases substantially with increasing age. In particular, the prevalence of curves with higher Cobb angles is substantially higher in girls than in boys: The female to male ratio rises from 1.4:1 in curves from 10° to 20° up to 7.2:1 in curves >40°. Curve pattern and prevalence of scoliosis is not only influenced by gender, but also by genetic factors and age of onset. These data obtained from school screening programs have to be interpreted with caution, since methods and cohorts of the different studies are not comparable as age groups of the cohorts and diagnostic criteria differ substantially. We do need data from studies with clear standards of diagnostic criteria and study protocols that are comparable to each other.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Markus Rafael
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Konieczny
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Hüsseyin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Senyurt
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopedic Surgery, University Hospital Düsseldorf, Moorenstr. 5, 40225 Düsseldorf, Germany.
authors.forename: Rüdiger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Krauspe
keywords: Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis; Epidemiology; Prevalence; School screening; Scoliosis