Objective: To assess whether the outcome of pregnancies complicated by kyphoscoliosis has improved with modern obstetric and orthopedic care.
Methods: A total of 17 patients with 27 pregnancies complicated by kyphoscoliosis were identified from 91,498 pregnancies between 1980 and 1994 from the obstetric audit database. Their obstetric records and associated orthopedic records were carefully studied.
Results: The incidence of kyphoscoliosis complicating pregnancy in the study period was 0.029%. The mean age of these patients in their index pregnancy was 32.7 years (range 23-40), mean height 140.7 cm (range 126-163). The cause of the kyphoscoliosis included traumatic injury, spinal tuberculosis, infantile poliomyelitis and idiopathic kyphoscoliosis. Eight of the patients had previous spinal surgery. The vaginal delivery rate was high and none suffered any cardiorespiratory embarrassment. There was no maternal or perinatal mortality.
Conclusions: The high maternal and perinatal risks associated with kyphoscoliosis reported in earlier literature is no longer valid. The high proportion of patients who had previous spinal surgery before pregnancy might be conducive to the avoidance of harassment and thus a favorable pregnancy outcome.