Effects of a tailor-made girdle on posture of adolescents with early scoliosis

Abstract

Spinal curvature and postural deviation are commonly found in female patients with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. The purpose of this study is to assess the effect of applying a tailor-made posture correction girdle on patients with early scoliosis with the aim to help them to improve their imbalanced posture and reduce the likelihood of curve progression. A total of 10 subjects who were female adolescents with symptoms of early scoliosis were recruited through a school-screening program to undertake a 3-month wear trial with the posture correction girdle. The Vicon motion capture system has also been employed to evaluate the short-term effectiveness of this therapeutic girdle on posture correction. The results show that the imbalanced posture of the subjects improves after the 3-month wear trial, and the effect is particularly significant for the acromion in the frontal plane in a standing posture. Posture could be improved with posture training. This study shows that there is an improving trend in posture and effectiveness of motion control through the use of the posture correction girdle.