Segmental wiring for spinal deformity. A morbidity report.

Members of the British Scoliosis Society were circulated a questionnaire in order to establish the morbidity of surgery for spinal deformity in the years 1983 and 1984 in Great Britain. Surgeons were asked to report the complications relating to all types of surgery for spinal deformity in order to establish the relative morbidity of segmental spinal wiring. Of the 1,121 patients reported, 1.4% suffered neurologic complications. In straightforward surgery for adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, there were four serious neurologic complications: three with Harri-Luque and one with routine Harrington distraction instrumentation. A plea is made that morbidity studies of spinal deformity surgery should compare all types of instrumentation and should be sufficiently detailed to allow statistical comparison.