Early onset scoliosis (EOS) is a challenging problem for all the physicians taking care of pediatric spine deformities. Treating the spinal deformity is not the only issue in young children, since the major goal is to control the deformity without impairing growth of the spine and the associated organ systems, particularly chest and lungs.

Treatment options for EOS remain controversial. Besides bracing and casting, new surgical options have recently been proposed: rib to rib distraction devices or pediatric growing rods. This is the first textbook entirely devoted to this topic. It is an international compilation of the current concepts of evaluation and treatment of deformities of the growing spine.

The book is presented in four sections:

  • Section I, untitled “General” deals with embryology, anatomy growth, and biomechanics of the pediatric spine.

  • In section II, untitled “Evaluation of the Growing Child,” and in section III, untitled “Spinal Deformities in the Growing Child,” the authors develop numerous clinical presentations of idiopathic and congenital scoliosis, as well as neuromuscular conditions. These chapters also include the presentation of Thoracic Insufficiency Syndrome and Syndromic Spinal Deformities.

  • The section IV, untitled “Management of Spinal Deformity in the Growing Child,” presents all the conservative and surgical treatment options currently available for spinal disorders in young children, with a particular emphasis on the most recent techniques : Single Growing Rods, Dual Growing Rods, Magnetic Powered Extensible Rods, VEPTER Expansion Thoracoplasty, and Growth Guided Instrumentations. Long-term effects and outcomes are also discussed.

All the chapters of this book are clearly presented and include a large number of clinical, radiographic and operative illustrations, as well as complete literature references.

The authors anticipate that this textbook will need to be updated in the near future, as concepts and treatment guidelines change rapidly for this subject. The Growing Spine Study Group will provide essential information and data to determine the true effectiveness of all the new techniques that are presented in this first edition.

“The Growing Spine” is an outstanding textbook that presents all the current knowledge about evaluation and treatment of spine deformities in young children. It will an essential tool for all the professionals involved in this field : pediatricians, pediatric spine surgeons, and ICU physicians, physical therapists.

Claude Karger

Strasbourg