Asymmetry of the Vertebral Body and Pedicles in the True Transverse Plane in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis: A CT-Based Study

Abstract

Study Design Cross-sectional. Objectives To quantify the asymmetry of the vertebral bodies and pedicles in the true transverse plane in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) and to compare this with normal anatomy. Summary of background data There is an ongoing debate about the existence and magnitude of the vertebral body and pedicle asymmetry in AIS and whether this is an expression of a primary growth disturbance, or secondary to asymmetrical loading. Methods Vertebral body asymmetry, defined as left-right overlap of the vertebral endplates (ie, 100%: perfect symmetry, 0%: complete asymmetry) was evaluated in the true transverse plane on CT scans of 77 AIS patients and 32 non-scoliotic controls. Additionally, the pedicle width, length, and angle and the length of the ideal screw trajectory were calculated. Results Scoliotic vertebrae were on average more asymmetric than controls (thoracic: AIS 96.0% vs. controls 96.4%; p =.005, lumbar: 95.8% vs. 97.2%; p