Management of scoliosis fusions have good outcomes with high degrees of correction and low rates of failure and infection. However a systematic review of PubMed papers in 2008 concluded "Scoliosis surgery has a varying but high rate of complications", although the non-standardised data on complications was difficult to assess and was incomplete. Patients with fused spines and permanent implants tend to have normal lives with unrestricted activities when they are younger; it remains to be seen whether those that have been treated with the newer surgical techniques develop problems as they age. A complementary surgical procedure a surgeon may recommend is called thoracoplasty
Scoliosis disease, but whether it changes quality of life, appearance, or back pain is unclear. Surgery is usually recommended by orthopedists for curves with a high likelihood of progression (i.e., greater than 45 to 50° of magnitude), curves that would be cosmetically unacceptable as an adult, curves in patients with spina bifida and cerebral palsy that interfere with sitting and care, and curves that affect physiological functions such as breathing. Surgery is indicated by the Society on Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT) at 45 to 50° and by the Scoliosis Research Society (SRS) at a Cobb angle of 45°. SOSORT