Published
I don't have to do spinal for the grades I have, but hearing and vision with the little ones is a beating, so I feel your pain. I'm screening all the new kids who enrolled since Winter Break right now, and it just throws the whole day off kilter. Hang in there, this will be done before we know it and summer is right around the corner!
don't do scoliosis screenings, the USPSTF says don't:
http://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/uspsaisc.htm
we have to in Missouri...
http://health.mo.gov/living/families/schoolhealth/pdf/SpinalScreeningGuidelines.pdf
What are are school nurses in Missouri doing about getting rid of a regulation that violates USPSTF recommendations? The recommendations states school scoliosis screening harms students.
It is not just that the screening is a waste of valuable instruction time, it subjects students to unnecessary costs, treatment and costs school districts precious funds that could be used for other student needs
California suspended reimbursement for scoliosis screenings for three years and although they are still recommended, they are not required.
Rationale: The USPSTF did not find good evidence that screening asymptomatic adolescents detects idiopathic scoliosis at an earlier stage than detection without screening. The accuracy of the most common screening test--the forward bending test with or without a scoliometer--in identifying adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis is variable, and there is evidence of poor follow up of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis who are identified in community screening programs.Government Code section 17581.5 was amended through AB 1610. The effect of which suspends the Removal of Chemicals mandate, the Scoliosis Screening mandate, and the PE Reporting mandate. Note that the PE reporting mandate is not the same as the Physical Fitness Testing mandate. The state continues to require districts to test students in grades 5, 7, and 9 on their physical fitness. The state suspended the requirement under the PE Reporting mandate for districts to report whether they meet the minimum number of PE minutes in grades 1-8.
The USPSTF found fair evidence that treatment of idiopathic scoliosis during adolescence leads to health benefits (decreased pain and disability) in only a small proportion of people. Most cases detected through screening will not progress to a clinically significant form of scoliosis. Scoliosis needing aggressive treatment, such as surgery, is likely to be detected without screening.
The USPSTF found fair evidence that treatment of adolescents with idiopathic scoliosis detected through screening leads to moderate harms, including unnecessary brace wear and unnecessary referral for specialty care. As a result, the USPSTF concluded that the harms of screening adolescents for idiopathic scoliosis exceed the potential benefits.
Although the USPSTF did not consider costs in making its recommendation and did not find high-quality studies of the cost-effectiveness of screening, the USPSTF concludes that the costs of a screening program would include the time of primary care clinicians, specialty evaluation, treatment with braces, and followup costs.
http://www.uspreventiveservicestaskforce.org/uspstf/uspsaisc.htm
BunnyBunnyBSNRN, ASN, BSN
1,019 Posts
aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
i am sick to death of spinal screenings!!!
thank you :)