Abstract
Post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is well recognised in children having repeated medical/surgical procedures. It has been suggested that it is common in young children undergoing growing rod treatment with ongoing lengthening and the inevitable accompanying complications.
We present an index case history, review the literature in order to infer a correlation for the incidence of PTSD and discuss diagnosis and management.
We present an index case history of PTSD in a young child undergoing growing rod treatment for scoliosis. The literature was reviewed for PTSD in paediatric surgery and pathologies requiring multiple treatments. Spinal surgery is compared with paediatric cancer, burns, organ failure/transplant, cardiopulmonary disease, inflammatory bowel disease, cystic fibrosis and limb lengthening.
No published studies examine PTSD in children undergoing multiple spinal surgeries. One paper reports that children undergoing growing rod treatments show “behavioural alterations” and changes in psychosocial behaviour, including anxiety on entering the operating room and broken rod worries. A recent spine meeting presentation referred to this.
Psychosocial problems occur in up to 30% of children with chronic or life-threatening illnesses which involve ongoing treatments. Factors such as age, parental anxiety and previous adverse medical experiences influence anxiety, depression and PTSD.
Based on our index case and methodological correlation with similar pathologies, we fell that PTSD is a genuine concern in children who have repeated spinal operations.
This paper is part of an ongoing study, but we believe that the spinal community should be aware of this diagnosis and its management.
Ethics approval: Audit Interest Statement: None
