Morbidity of iliac crest bone graft harvesting in adolescent deformity surgery.

The iliac crest as a source of bone graft has remained popular and continues to be the standard source of bone graft material in spinal arthrodesis surgery. The purpose of the present study was to quantify the frequency and severity of posterior iliac crest bone graft harvest site pain associated with adolescent spinal deformity correction procedures. Patients were evaluated prospectively at a minimum of 1 year after a spinal fusion procedure for idiopathic scoliosis or kyphosis. Patients were asked to quantify the pain level at their harvest site over the previous month based on a 0-to-10 numeric rating scale. Data were collected on 71 patients: 60 with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis and 11 with Scheuermann's kyphosis. There was no gender difference noted, with 1 of the 10 boys (10%) and 6 of the 61 girls (10%) reporting postoperative pain. Seven of 60 patients with scoliosis reported pain (12%), whereas none of the patients with Scheuermann's kyphosis reported pain. None reported a pain level greater than 3 of 10 or any effect on activity level. This series shows that iliac crest bone graft harvest site pain is absent in most patients (90%) and of limited severity in those who reported pain (score <or=3), suggesting that the postoperative morbidity associated with autograft use is minimal in adolescent patients.