The Efficacy of Scouting Technology in Pedicle Screw Placement in the Patients With Degenerative Scoliosis.

Objective: To investigate the curative effect of ball tip technology in pedicle screw placement in the patients with degenerative scoliosis (DS), as compared to traditional freehand technique.

Methods: A total of 90 patients with degenerative scoliosis who were admitted to Affiliated Hospital of Hebei Engineering University from October 2019 to October 2021 were selected as the objects in this prospective study. They were randomly divided into an experimental group and a control group with 45 cases in each. The clinical indications, the accuracy of pedicle screw placement, the occurrence of surgical complications, the measurement of spinal and pelvic parameters, the recovery of spinal function and pain degree were recorded and compared within the two groups.

Results: After treatment, the operation time, intraoperative blood loss, total number of screws, and time of screwing were compared between the two groups, and the difference was not significant (P > .05). However, the bedding time and the hospital stay were shorter in the experimental group than the control group with difference (P < .05). There was no significant difference in clinical standards and poor implantation in the Gertzbein-Robbins A-E classification between the two groups (P > .05). While the number of perfect placement of screws in the experimental group was higher (P < .05). Before treatment, the Cobbs angle and pelvic incidence-lumbar lordosis (PI-LL) levels of the two groups were comparable (P > .05); after treatment, the Cobbs angle and PI-LL levels of the two groups were lower than those before treatment, and the difference was significant (P < .05). There was no significant difference in Cobbs angle and PI-LL levels between groups (P > .05). Before treatment, the JOA and DOI scores of the two groups were comparable (P > .05); after treatment, the JOA and DOI scores of the two groups were improved (P < .05); the improvement of JOA and DOI scores of the experimental group were better than those in the control group (P < .05). Before treatment, there was no significant difference in the pain degree between the two groups (P > .05); after treatment, the pain of the two groups was improved compared with that before treatment, and the pain degree of the experimental group was lower than that of the control group (P < .05). The incidence of postoperative complications in the experimental group was lower than that in the control group, but there was no significant difference in the total incidence of postoperative complications between the two groups (P > .05).

Conclusion: The scouting technique-assisted screw placement can effectively improve the spinal function of patients with degenerative scoliosis, with obvious curative effect and high safety.