Learning Objectives:

1) Describe how current treatments for early-onset scoliosis affect the health of children including the potential risks from anesthesia and health-related quality of life. 2) Articulate the actual indications for surgery and children with early-onset scoliosis and when it should be performed. 3) Delineate how the indications for surgery and the proper instrumentation selection change over time and with the child’s individual condition.

Enabling technologies have the potential to increase safety and efficiency while improving outcomes in spinal deformity surgery. These may include radiation reduction technologies, navigation, robotics and even machine learning or predictive analytics. While they don’t replace surgeon experience as a critical component, they have the power to leverage surgeon experience for the benefit of the patient when combined with the right technologies.

In an effort to raise awareness of the importance of ethics-related decision-making in our practices, we provide five thought-provoking examples. SRS members infrequently experience ethics-related issues in their practices and, understandably, have limited knowledge of how these issues should be handled. Members need guidelines to follow, and references to review, if/when they are confronted with various ethical issues involving them or their colleagues.

Various methods to assess a patient’s biological age/frailty exist. These methods include assessing comorbidities, sarcopenia, various frailty questionnaires and epigenetics. We have learned, through multiple studies, that this assessment is important in understanding the risks of complications and defining the road to recovery. The goal of this webinar is to give an overview of these various methods, assess the differences between these methods, and if one method is optimal for ASD patients.

While spinal deformity surgery is commonplace in many countries, others lack the expertise and resources to provide the appropriate standard of care for their patients. This situation in the developing world makes treating complicated and heterogenous spinal deformities difficult, especially early onset scoliosis. This webinar will inform how or where to involve outreach trips and information about spinal deformity management practices in countries with limited resources. 

Calling all early career spine deformity surgeons - this webinar is for you. This webinar will help you identify resources to gather and build to bolster your early career, setting up a pathway to improved clinical care, academic output, and work-life balance. Faculty will also provide personal examples of how they scaled their surgical skill and practice.

Learning Objectives:

1) Understand what value in spine care is. 2) Be able to identify and use tools to improve spine deformity care. 3) Recognize real life examples of work in this area.

There are some common themes of intra-operative problems in spinal deformity surgery that can occur span surgeon seniority. Situations where the pedicle screws are difficult to insert or have resulted in an iatrogenic complication require alternative anchors options. An understanding of these with their relative merits and de-merits would help in a crisis. Some curves are very stiff. Surgical maneuvers can create flexibility of the apical segments.

Learning Objectives:

1) Analyze the variety of intraspinal anomalies seen and determine the best management strategies for the most common. 2) Classify the types of split cord malformations seen and when these should be treated prior to spine deformity correction. 3) Discuss strategies to minimize neurologic complications in patients with intraspinal anomaly and scoliosis.

As the world continues to change, social media plays an increasing role in all aspects of life, including individual medical practices. This webinar is built to help catch the attention of busy spine surgeons and expose the impact of social media on their practice, keep them up to date and help them be prepared to deal with virtual exposure.