SEAS study of exercise in mature spine

[hdugger]

We have a number of posts about this study

http://www.scoliosisjournal.com/content/3/1/20

scattered hither and yon.

The summary on the patient is that she is in her mid twenties and, doing 30 minutes of exercise a day, reduced her curve over a year from RT 35 LL 47 to RT 32 LL 28.

Because I wondered about the context of the study, I sent them the following questions to clarify their results:

* Has the patient been able to maintain the reduction?
* If so, how much time per day does she spend in specific exercises to maintain the reduction?
* Is this the only adult patient who has performed these exercises and seen a reduction? If so, how many other adult patients did not see a reduction when using these exercises? If not, can you tell me just a little bit about the other patients who saw a reduction?

Here is the answer I received today:

"* Yes, the patient could maintain her correction. Her last x-ray was even better: April 2009 T6-T12 28°; T12-L4 26°.
* In the last two years, she did exercises three times a week, for 30 minutes.
* I'm going to publish a new study we already presented in Athens Sosort Metting in 2008 ( http://www.scoliosisjournal.com/content/4/S1/O55 ); in the meantime, we added some more patients.
Considering all the patients of the study (34 patients), after at least one year of SEAS exercise therapy the scoliotic curves showed a statistically significative reduction.
In the x-ray just before the beginning of SEAS exercise therapy, the mean worst scoliotic curve was 55,8 +- 14° Cobb. After at least one year of therapy, the mean worst scoliotic curve was 51,14 +- 13,8° Cobb. 19 patients improved (> 5° variation) and 15 didn't change (< 5° variation). No patient worsened.

Many patients had particularly good results:
Exemple 1: L.D: January 1972, 18 years old: thoracic curve 48° Cobb, Risser 5; Feb 1999, 45 years old: thoracic curve 72° Cobb. She begins SEAS therapy. November 2006, 52 years old, 64° Cobb
Exemple 2: A.C: June 1987, 33 years old, thoracic curve 57° Cobb, lumbar curve 33° Cobb; february 2007, 53 years old, thoracic curve 68° Cobb, lumbar curve 45° Cobb. She begins SEAS therapy. September 2008, 54 years old, thoracic curve 58° Cobb and lumbar curve 39° Cobb.
Exemple 3: G.M: September 2005, 51 years old, lumbar curve 82° Cobb. She begins SEAS therapy. March 2008, 53 years old, lumbar curve 75° Cobb
Exemple 4: B.P: august 2007, 19 years old, thoracic curve 43° Cobb and lumbar curve 42° Cobb. He begins SEAS therapy. September 08, 20 years old, thoracic curve 33° Cobb and lumbar curve 36° Cobb."

[Pooka1]

Well that is interesting.

I wonder if the people who didn't improve simply didn't exercise enough?

I mean maybe most people can expect some reduction if they do the exercise.

[hdugger]

The big issue for me is whether it can stop progression - so far, their results look pretty promising. If alot of participants are reducing their curves, then I suspect that the lack of progression is real.

Did you look at the study? It's hazy, but it does seem to support that idea that the curve starts progressing again if you stop the exercise. But, again, 30 minutes 3 days a week certainly seems like the type of thing that someone could sustain.

I would very much like to see them share their program with other centers to see if anyone else is seeing the same results.

[Pooka1]

I didn't read the article but I will. I just go the strong impression that if 19 of 34 people can produce a reduction then the others might not be following the exercises. Just my thought.

I think these guys are going to have to send out these radiographs for blind readings at some point to dispel doubts if they exist.

[hdugger]

I think these guys are going to have to send out these radiographs for blind readings at some point to dispel doubts if they exist.

Yes, absolutley. I very much *want* to believe and I'm pretty hesitant because the results depend on (I believe) one person's reading of the xrays. Plus, and I say this with all good will becaue I'm of Italian heritage myself, I would feel alot more confident if the results were coming out of England :)

[Pooka1]

As long as they don't come out of Montreal, I maintain an open mind.

And I think the results are in on the folks behind that one torso rotation study, which was particularly ridiculous in my opinion.

[hdugger]

Which torso rotation study was that?

[Pooka1]

http://journals.lww.com/jspinaldisorders/Abstract/2008/07000/Treatment_of_Adolescent_Idiopathic_Scoliosis_With. 10.aspx

[Ballet Mom]

Hi hduggar,

I guess the question is now, which of these various exercise methods should I have my daughter do after she's out of her brace.....SEAS, side shift exercises, torso rotational, Schroth? Hmmm...decisions, decisions.

I guess I'll start her on side-shift as it's the least expensive and easiest to learn.

[Pooka1]

Wait a minute... I did read that.

I would have offered to clean up the translation grammar for a cup of coffee. This isn't a bad as machine translation and is somewhat better than a polish paper I reviewed recently. But it is bad enough such that it is saying the opposite of what it means in places I suspect... (red text added)


Obviously exercises can lead to results other than stabilization of the curve, including pain [reduction?], postural control, balance, strength, but in the indexed literature no data have been published on this topic.

Other than form (:D), it appears she exercised every day for at least a year and had her exercises "intensified" (whatever that means as they don't give two PT regimes):


B.I. started performing SEAS exercises 30 minutes every day at home, and came to the Center every two months to check and intensify her exercises.

Again, I think they meant another word, not intensified. Maybe reviewed or scrutinized.

The radiographs look better so I believe she reduced her curve but the measurements should be checked. I'd like them to follow her case as long as possible.

[MissEmmyF]

hmmm, that is very interesting. what exactly are SEAS exercises? can anyone provide any photos or descriptions of what one might actually do when they are in the middle of an SEAS exercise? i'm very curious as how it relates to Schroth, yoga, or PT...also, where are there SEAS practitioners? where did the methodology come from?

[Pooka1]

where did the methodology come from?

I don't know but my guess is the Isle of Capri and the exercises were originally done in bikinis and speedos. :D

[hdugger]

They seem to be in a range of locations -

http://www.isico.it/ukdove.htm

They have a huge PDF - http://www.isico.it/approach/text.pdf - which explains their philosophy in detail. But their exercises? Not so much :)

Unfortunately, if they're the only people right now showing frequent reductions in spinal curvature, and if they're making money off their treatments, they may have a strong reason to be oblique about their methodology. Good business, but not such great science. I'm hoping they start sharing their methods a bit so that we can see whether other practitioners can get the same results.


hmmm, that is very interesting. what exactly are SEAS exercises? can anyone provide any photos or descriptions of what one might actually do when they are in the middle of an SEAS exercise? i'm very curious as how it relates to Schroth, yoga, or PT...also, where are there SEAS practitioners? where did the methodology come from?

[hdugger]

Wait a minute... I did read that.

That's the first one. The preliminary study they mention is here:

http://www.scoliosisjournal.com/content/4/S1/O55