Set in the backdrop of Scoliosis Awareness Month, members of the Scoliosis Research Society announced the updated SRS Research Agenda.
The agenda is the culmination of several months of audit, investigation, and interviews with not only members but also external partners, including other spinal societies, study groups and funding partners. In addition, the SRS Research Council surveyed members to uncover suggested topics and search for gaps. More than 83 percent of respondents had participated in a spinal deformity research project within the past three years.
Members identified trending themes in spinal research and innovation that will influence fields of study for the coming five-to-six years.
Agenda topics include:
- Creation and validation of improved patient-reported outcomes measures (PROMS) for the assessment of spinal deformity patients.
- Study of the utility and limitations of enabling technologies such as 3D planning/robotics in the treatment of spinal deformity patients.
- Assessment of the potential relationships between biomarkers for aging/senescence and disease etiology, treatment decisions, and patient counseling in adult deformity patients.
- Applications of predictive analytics/AI to spinal deformity care, including classification, management decisions, complication risk, and outcomes assessment.
- Strategies to effectively address the European Medical Device Regulations
- Establishment of patient registries to enable larger datasets to address important clinical and research questions.
- Improved understanding of why proximal junctional kyphosis (PJK) develops and techniques to reduce its occurrence.
- Establishment of standard data sets in the care and study of spinal deformity patients in order to facilitate improved assessment of patient outcomes and multicenter studies.
- Study of the utility and limitations of fusion-less technologies in spinal deformity patients.
- Improved strategies to assess growth status in pediatric spinal deformity patients.
- Creation, application, and study of outcomes of non-op protocols/treatment strategies for spinal deformity patients
- Application of low-dose CT in the assessment and treatment of spinal deformity patients as a means of reducing radiation exposure
“Research is the SRS’s middle name. We’re always promoting research among our members,” said Justin Smith, MD, chair elect of the SRS Research Council. “We put forward a lot of money every year in research grants, it is a big priority for the society.”
Listen to Dr. Smith talk about the agenda and directed research in the latest episode of Scoliosis Dialogues: An SRS Podcast, out today.
For more information on the Research Agenda and SRS Grant opportunities, visit our website. To contribute to research funding, review all the ways you can donate to SRS.
About Scoliosis Research Society
The Scoliosis Research Society is a non-profit, professional organization, made up of physicians and allied health personnel. Our primary focus is on providing continuing medical education for health care professionals and on funding/supporting research in spinal deformities. Founded in 1966, SRS has gained recognition as the world's premier spine deformity society. Please visit www.srs.org for further information. Also follow us on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and TikTok.