Risk factors of postoperative pulmonary complications after primary posterior fusion and hemivertebra resection in congenital scoliosis patients younger than 10 years old: a retrospective study

Background: Postoperative pulmonary complications are common and associated with morbidity and mortality. Congenital scoliosis is a failure of vertebral formation and/or segmentation arising from abnormal vertebral development. Posterior fusion and osteotomy are necessary for these patients to prevent deterioration of spine deformity. The incidence of postoperative pulmonary complications in this specific group of patients, especially young children were unknown. Methods: A retrospective study was conducted and electronic medical records of early-onset scoliosis patients who had primary posterior fusion and hemivertebra resection at our institution from January 2014 to September 2019 were reviewed. The demographic characteristics, the intraoperative and postoperative parameters were collected to identify the predictors of postoperative pulmonary complications. Results: A total of 174 patients (57.5% boys) with a median age of 3 years old were included for analysis. Eighteen patients (10.3%) developed perioperative pulmonary complications and pneumonia (n=13) was the most common. History of recent upper respiratory infection was not related to postoperative pulmonary complications. Multi-factorial regression analysis showed thoracoplasty was the only predictive risk factor of postoperative pulmonary complications. Conclusions: For congenital scoliosis patients younger than 10 years old, thoracoplasty determine the occurrence of postoperative pulmonary complications. Both surgeons and anesthesiologists should pay attention to patients undergoing thoracoplasty and preventive measures are necessary.