ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Pediatr.
Sec. Pediatric Orthopedics
Volume 13 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fped.2025.1696612
This article is part of the Research TopicFractures and Deformities of the Extremities in Children and Adolescents: Etiology, Diagnosis, and Treatment: 2025View all 10 articles
Risk Factors and Postoperative Comfort Nursing in Adolescents with Flatfoot Complicated by Idiopathic Scoliosis
Provisionally accepted
- 1Rehabilitation Hospital Affiliated to Fujian University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Fuzhou, China
- 2Fujian Key Laboratory of Rehabilitation Technology, Fuzhou, China
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Objective Adolescent flatfoot complicated by idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) are common musculoskeletal disorders, yet their shared risk factors and postoperative management remain underexplored. Current study aims to investigate podiatric risk factors for AIS in flatfoot patients and evaluates the efficacy of comfort nursing on postoperative nausea and vomiting following corrective surgery. Method A two-phase study was conducted. First, 193 flatfoot patients were categorized into AIS (n=144) and non-AIS (n=49) groups to analyze risk factors via logistic regression. Second, the AIS patients undergoing PCS were randomized into a control group (routine care, n=72) and a comfort nursing (CN) group (n=72). The incidence, frequency, and severity of PONV, vital signs, medication use, and recovery outcomes were compared. Results Age, hallux valgus angle asymmetry (ΔHVA), and Meary's angle asymmetry (ΔMA) were identified as independent risk factors for AIS in flatfoot patients. The CN group exhibited a significantly lower incidence of PONV (13/72 (18.06%) vs. 35/72 (48.61%)) and lower frequency of episodes compared to the control group (P<0.001). The CN intervention also resulted in significantly reduced pain VAS scores, improved vital signs (temperature and urine output), less severe PONV-related symptoms, decreased antiemetic use, and enhanced overall recovery and patient satisfaction (all P<0.05). Conclusion Asymmetric foot morphology (ΔHVA and ΔMA) is a significant risk factor for AIS in adolescents with flatfoot. Implementing a multidimensional comfort nursing protocol effectively mitigates PONV, alleviates discomfort, and promotes postoperative recovery after PCS, suggesting that this approach could represent a valuable strategy for improving clinical outcomes in similar settings.
Keywords: Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, Anxiety, Blood Vessels, Comfort nursing, Depression, Flatfoot, Nausea and vomiting, Risk factors
Received: 01 Sep 2025; Accepted: 17 Oct 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Jiang, Lin and Wang. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence: Xiaofang Wang, xfwang_phd@nxu-edu.cn
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