History and development
Schroth therapy has a long tradition. It was founded in 1921 by Katharina Schroth in Meissen in the eastern part of Germany. In 1961 Katharina and her daughter Christa moved to Bad Sobernheim and in 1983 established their clinic – the “Katharina Schroth Klinik.”
Katharina passed away in 1985. Christa continued the work of her mother and refined the orthopedic –breathing treatment. In 1972 Christa published a textbook on the principles of
3-dimensional scoliosis treatment. In 1995, Asklepios purchased the clinic. Today Asklepios is one of the leading health care providers in Germany. The further development of the method was undertaken mainly by the head of the physical therapy department Axel Hennes and Udo Roevenich and scientifically proven by the orthopedist HR Weiss, the medical director, and son from Christa, until 2008 when he left the clinic and realize his treatment program (Best Practise) according to his own ideas and visions. Christa retired in 1995 and passed away in March 2015.
The Schroth Method developed into the most recognized conservative exercise-based approach for scoliosis treatment. The Asklepios Katharina-Schroth-Klinik offers an intensive in-patient therapy program for 3-5 weeks for children, adolescents as well as for adult scoliosis patients. PT´s from Germany came to take training courses since 1986 and started to use the method in their out-patient therapeutic facilities. Since that time patients learn coping with scoliosis in a non-surgical and if possible “non-bracing” way of treatment.
Today braces play an important and evidenced-based role in the treatment of scoliosis. For ISST therapists it is crucial to understand the principles of bracing and to evaluate the quality of bracing concepts. For patients with a brace, the ISST-Schroth therapist should implement brace treatment strategy into the physical therapy approach for scoliosis.
Therefore the cooperation with professional health caretakers in the scoliosis field for physical therapists, orthotists, physicians, orthopedics, orthopedic surgeons should become an active part of building multi-professional teams or even bring up specific scoliosis centers.
ISST, as the international Schroth 3-dimensional scoliosis treatment, is based consequently on the original Schroth therapy developed and practiced in the Asklepios Katharina Schroth clinics.
In 2016, Axel Hennes founded ISST-International with the ISST-Training Institute making great efforts to provide adequate solutions for continued vocational training for relevant professional groups for conservative scoliosis treatment. He works for the Asklepios and Sanomed company since 1990.
Sanomed is a part of Asklepios providing a highly specialized out-patient spine care center with complete medical services (EOS, MRI) and orthopedic technical service (SANOMED -braces).
