PMID: 9164137Feb 1, 1997Paper

The effects of spinal fusion on respiratory function and quality of life in Duchenne muscular dystrophy

Rinshō shinkeigaku = Clinical neurology
T MatsumuraM P Takahashi

Abstract

We studied the functional outcome of spinal fusion for the surgical treatment of scoliosis in 8 patients with Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). The mean age of DMD patients at the time of the surgery and the mean follow-up duration was 13.8 (12.3 to 15.4) and 3.9 (1.5 to 6.8) years, respectively. The average spinal angle (Cobb angle) was corrected from 58.8 to 28.6 degrees with the mean corrective rate of 51.3% by the surgical intervention. The correction rate was higher and the corrected Cobb angle remained unchanged during follow-up period in mildly scoliotic patients. Forced vital capacity (FVC) increased post-operatively in 3 patients with moderate scoliosis (Cobb angle: 50 to 80 degrees), indicating that the correction of spinal alignment is effective for the treatment of decreased thoracic volume in DMD. On the other hand, two cases with low % FVC (16.9% and 30.4%, respectively) had poor prognosis in respiratory status. Namely, one died of pneumonia at 17 months after the surgery and the other required mechanical ventilation via nasal mask at 3 years post surgery. Sitting balance improved in all patients, which resulted in more functional use of their upper extremities. During the follow-up period, all patients except on...Continue Reading

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