Gurgaon: A 13-year-old girl from Ghaziabad, whose spine had curved to an alarming 80 degrees, is standing upright again after doctors at CK Birla Hospital performed a complex scoliosis correction surgery that carried the risk of permanent paralysis if the spinal cord was damaged. The surgery, performed on June 27, corrected more than 90% of the spinal deformity without neurological complications.The teenager had been diagnosed with severe adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, a condition in which the spine curves sideways and twists, causing shoulder imbalance, an uneven waistline and pelvic asymmetry. In advanced cases, the deformity can compress the chest cavity, affecting lung function and limiting physical activity. Her Cobb angle, the standard measure of spinal curvature, had reached 80 degrees, placing her in the severe category where surgery is often the only effective treatment.The operation was led by Dr Arun Bhanot, director, spine surgery, and Dr Ankush Garg, senior consultant, spine surgery. Surgeons inserted multiple pedicle screws into the deformed spine and connected them with two metallic rods to gradually straighten it. As the procedure carries a significant risk of spinal cord injury, the team used continuous intra-operative neuro-monitoring (IONM), which tracks nerve signals during surgery to ensure the spinal cord remained intact while the deformity was being corrected.The surgery reduced the spinal curvature from 80 degrees to less than 10 degrees. According to the hospital, the girl was mobilised on the first day after surgery and discharged without any intra-operative or post-operative complications. Clinical photographs and X-rays released by the hospital showed a marked improvement in spinal alignment, shoulder balance and waist symmetry following the procedure.Dr Ankush Garg said scoliosis in adolescent girls is not merely a cosmetic deformity but can also have a lasting psychological impact if left untreated. “Scoliosis in young adolescent girls can be a big psychological stress point with the potential to cause a lifetime of anxiety and low self-esteem. Besides this, it can predispose patients to early degenerative problems of the spine in adulthood,” he said.He said early diagnosis remains key to preventing severe deformities. “Parental awareness and regular school screenings can help identify scoliosis early, when rehabilitation exercises and bracing may be enough to keep the spinal curve manageable and delay or even avoid surgery.”Dr Arun Bhanot said many children with progressive scoliosis are required to wear corrective braces before surgery, a treatment that can itself be physically cumbersome and emotionally taxing. Surgical correction, he added, is technically demanding and carries risks of neurological weakness, incomplete deformity correction and implant-related complications.“However, advances in pre-operative imaging, meticulous surgical planning, intra-operative neuro-monitoring and well-controlled anaesthesia techniques have significantly reduced these risks in high-stakes spine surgeries,” he said.
