El Paso, TX. Chiropractor Dr. Alex Jimenez examines scoliosis.

We all have curves in our backs, but scoliosis causes the spine to curve in the wrong direction. It causes sideways curves, and those are not the same as the normal curves of the spine. In case you looked at your spine from your side, you had see it curves out at your neck (cervical spine), in at your mid-back (thoracic spine), and out again at your low back (lumbar spine). Your back is likely to curve that way.

However, if your spine was looked at by you from behind, you shouldn’t see any curves. When there are sideways curves in the back from the back view, that is scoliosis. The curves can seem like an “S” or a “C.”

 

Spine Anatomy: Quick Lesson

You first need to know what a healthy back looks like, to comprehend scoliosis. You will find four areas in your back:

Cervical Spine:

That is your neck, which begins at the base of your skull. It features seven little spinal bones (called vertebrae), which doctors label C1 to C7 (the “C” means cervical). The numbers one to seven signify the level of the vertebrae. C1 is closest for your skull, while C7 is closest to your torso.

Thoracic Spine:

Your mid-back has 12 vertebrae which are labeled T1 to T12 (the “T” means thoracic). Vertebrae in your thoracic spine connect to your own ribs, making this a part of your back comparatively stiff and stable. Your thoracic spine doesn’t move as the other areas of your back.

Lumbar Spine:

In your low back, you’ve got five vertebrae that are tagged L1 to L5 (the “L” means lumbar). These vertebrae are your strongest and biggest vertebrae, responsible for carrying lots of the weight of your body’s. The lumbar vertebrae are also your last “authentic” vertebrae; down from this region, your vertebrae are fused. The truth is, L5 may be fused with part of your sacrum.

Sacrum & Coccyx:

The sacrum has five vertebrae that usually fuse by adulthood to form one bone. The coccyx—commonly known as your tail bone—has four (but occasionally five) fused vertebrae.

Normal Spinal Curves: Lordosis & Kyphosis

When viewed in the side, you can observe the spine has both outward and inward curves. These curves help your back are also very important to flexibility and hold your weight.

There are just two types of normal curves in your back, and they’re called lordosis and kyphosis. Kyphosis means the spine curves inward, and lordosis means the spine curves out.

There are two spinal curves that are lordotic and two kyphotic in an ordinary back. Your cervical and lumbar spinal columns each possess a lordotic curve. Sacrum and your thoracic back have kyphotic curves.

While lordosis and kyphosis refer to a healthy curvature in your back, in addition they describe abnormal spinal curves which might be different than scoliosis. Lordosis that is strange is an extreme inward spinal curve. Kyphosis that is strange is a state that results in a hunchback or slouching posture, and you also will read about it in our Kyphosis Center.

Types Of Scoliosis

 

Scoliosis is ordinarily associated with kids, but adults can have it, also. This generally occurs the disorder progresses aggressively or when scoliosis is not discovered during childhood. Most cases of scoliosis—more than 80%, in fact—are idiopathic, meaning they don’t possess a cause that is known.

Listed here are the various kinds of scoliosis:

• Infantile idiopathic scoliosis is diagnosed in kids ages 0 to 3.
• Congenital scoliosis happens when the spine doesn’t grow properly in the womb.
• Neuromuscular scoliosis is caused by brain, spinal cord, and muscular system disorders..
• Syndromic scoliosis grows as part of an illness or an underlying syndrome.
• Juvenile idiopathic scoliosis is diagnosed in kids ages 4 to 10.
• Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis is diagnosed in young people ages 11 to 18.
• Adult degenerative or idiopathic scoliosis is diagnosed in individuals older than 18.

Along with the types noted above, your back specialist may refer to your scoliosis early-onset scoliosis—a term for scoliosis detected before 10 years of age. Syndromic scoliosis, congenital scoliosis, neuromuscular scoliosis, infantile idiopathic scoliosis, and juvenile idiopathic scoliosis may all be considered early-onset scoliosis.

Treating Scoliosis

Scoliosis brings up images of braces and perhaps memories of being examined for it by the school nurse. Bracing is one of the most common treatment choices for scoliosis as the curve may be fixed by it without back surgery.

Sometimes, though, the curve is too extreme and bracing does not help enough. Because scenario, you could have scoliosis surgery to correct the curve. You can find out more on the topic of surgical treatment for scoliosis in scoliosis surgery for scoliosis and adults operation for kids.

For kids, particularly, it can be frightening to learn they have scoliosis. Having that label makes them different at a time in their own lives when they do not need to be different. They may not enjoy the concept of wearing a brace, either. But scoliosis is nothing to be scared or ashamed of. With the correct treatment, scoliosis doesn’t have to define your life.