Back braces are used to assist spinal fracture healing and post-operative spinal fusion, according to Spine-Health. Minimizing your spinal motion enhances your bones' healing processes. A back brace may also decrease your low back pain and discomfort. Back braces may also be used to help correct spinal abnormalities, such as a scoliotic curve.
Boston Brace
Dr. John Hall and William Miller developed the Boston Brace at Boston Children's Hospital, according to SpineUniverse, to help correct scoliotic spinal curvatures. It's also touted to reduce spinal rotational misalignments. The Boston Brace is symmetrical and corrects spinal curvature by using pads--typically located in the brace's back corner--to exert pressure on your ribs and push your body toward the brace's front, which helps keep your back and body upright. Opening in the back, the Boston Brace typically runs from the top of your hips to your shoulder blades; the design is more effective at treating scoliotic curves in the lumbar spine or low back than the upper back. To achieve the desired result--spinal correction or the prevention of further spinal curve increases--you should wear your Boston Brace 20 to 23 hours per day. According to BostonBrace.com, before putting you in a brace, including the Boston Brace, your doctor will consider the following: your spinal maturity, the degree and extent of your curvature, the location of your curve and your curve's potential for progression.
Charleston Bending Brace
Dr. Frederick Reed and Ralph Hooper developed the Charleston Bending Brace and introduced it in 1979, according to SpineUniverse. Unlike the Boston Brace, which is worn almost constantly, the Charleston Bending Brace is worn only at night while you're sleeping. The asymmetrical design of the Charleston Bending Brace pushes your body to the side, toward your curve's convexity, to "over-correct" your curve during the approximately eight hours you're wearing the brace. This brace is primarily used in patients aged 12 to 14 who possess a thoracolumbar-only scoliotic curve. The brace is less effective in older teens, because structural maturity has already occurred. It's believed that the part-time nature of this brace contributes to greater patient compliance, although more evidence is required to make a definitive conclusion, states SpineUniverse.
Milwaukee Brace
Drs. Walter Blount and Albert Schmidt developed the Milwaukee Brace in 1945 at the Medical College of Wisconsin and Milwaukee's Children's Hospital. The Milwaukee Brace, a largely symmetrical brace, has evolved over the years, taking its current form around 1975. According to SpineUniverse, the Milwaukee Brace is still used, especially for scoliotic curves high in the thoracic spine that other braces can't treat as effectively. Running the length of your torso, metal bars on the front and back of the Milwaukee Brace are secured to a form-fitting pelvic girdle constructed of plastic and to a throat ring that encircles your neck. Pressure pads, which are attached to the metal bars by straps, are carefully placed on your torso, depending on the location of your scoliotic curvature. The Milwaukee Brace's metal bars hold your body upright and the neck ring keeps your head centered over your pelvis. The brace's pressure pads exert a constant, corrective force against your scoliotic curve to prevent curve progression as you're growing.
