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Policy Statement

US Preventive Services Task Force

JAMA. 1993;269(20):2664-2666.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

SUMMARY OF RECOMMENDATION

There is insufficient evidence to recommend for or against routine screening of asymptomatic adolescents for idiopathic scoliosis. According to the US Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) coding system (Tables 1 and 2), this represents a "C" recommendation, based on grade II-3 evidence for the effectiveness of early detection and treatment and on grade III evidence for potential adverse effects (see "Methodology").

The evidence does not support routine visits to clinicians for the specific purpose of scoliosis screening or for performing the examination at specific ages during adolescence. It is prudent for clinicians to include visual inspection of the back of adolescents when it is examined for other reasons. Additional specific inspection maneuvers to screen for scoliosis, such as the forward-bending test, are not recommended. Clinicians should bear in mind the limited current evidence regarding the effectiveness of scoliosis screening and treatment and the uncertainties about the natural . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

Footnotes
Reprint requests to the Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, US Public Health Service, 330 C St SW, Room 2132, Switzer Bldg, Washington, DC 20201 (Steven H. Woolf, MD, MPH).

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