Hello...
  A friend of mine has a son who might have this problem
(something to do with curvature of the spine?). Could someone
qualified to comment please explain what this means for the
child? Is this a progressive disorder? Does it necessitate corrective
surgery? Is there any treatment other than suregery?

*I am not an M.D.*
I was diagnosed with scoliosis when I was 12 years old. Mine was caused by
a short leg, and not by a problem with my spine. For years I wore
corrective shoes to compensate for the length discrepancy, which did
straighten my spine. The difference was an inch and I was told that a
difference that much warrants correction. I did have the surgery - which
consisted of shortening the femur (thigh bone) by 3/4 inch. I healed
beautifully and am _very_ glad I had it done. My spine is straight and I
don't walk with any kind of limp.

Some scoliosis is caused by other problems with muscles, vertebrae, etc.
Depending on how severe the curvature is, surgery might be the best option
(after braces and other conservative treatments). If left untreated it
could worsen and possibly lead to crippling, not to mention deformity.

Good luck,

--

Dept of Otolaryngology MS-NA102       work: (713) 798-4084
Baylor College of Medicine             FAX: (713) 798-3403
Houston, TX  77030

I have scoliosis, a side-to-side curvature of the spine, probably
as a result of polio when I was a baby (born two years before the
Salk vaccine was released, dammit!).  My spine makes a lazy S-curve,
and is about a 30 degree curve each direction.  My orthopods
did not consider it worth the effort of attempting to
brace the curve, and at the time, many of the new surgeries had not
been developed.   The curvature has been stable since late adolescence.

I have frequent backaches that I can control with exercise, rest, and
a decent chair. I understand there are some surgical procedures that
might help me if things do get worse, but I do not choose to consider
them at this time.

My best guess is, speaking from my experience as a patient, (I'm
a botanist, not a medical person!), is that the boy will be given
a series of exercises to do, and will be re-examined at 6 month or
yearly intervals.  If the curvature is severe, or seems to be progressing,
the orthopods will probably recommend bracing or surgery.

There's a lot of us out here with scoliosis.   Much of the time, it's
no big deal.

Kay Klier  Biology Dept  UNI

|> Hello...
|>   A friend of mine has a son who might have this problem
|> (something to do with curvature of the spine?). Could someone
|> qualified to comment please explain what this means for the
|> child? Is this a progressive disorder? Does it necessitate corrective
|> surgery? Is there any treatment other than suregery?

Scoliosis is side to side curvature of the spine.  Normally there is none. It's a condition of childhood, and all but the most severe curves become stable at the end of adoloscence.

What to do about it depends on the age of the child and speed of worsening of the curve. Small curves in adolescents necessitate no more than corrective execises most of the time. If corrective exercises do not help in smaller children, the next step is bracing. Only a few children need operation: those who have increading curvature that does not respond to more conservative measures.

The operation consists in straightening the spine, then putting bone grafts around the curved portion, and some sort of system (rods or plates) to keep the spine straight until the bone grafts are solid and fuse the deformed vertebrae in the corrected position.

-philippe

While growing up, I had 4 friends who were treated for scoliosis.
One was treated with surgery (after wearing a brace for 5 or so years)
and she spent several months with a body cast and some time with
a rod attached to her spine.  I didn't know her well so I don't know
all the details or how long she had the rod.

The other three friends wore braces from the time they were
diagnosed until they stopped growing.  Once they stopped growing,
they were weaned off the braces slowly (>1 year).  They now have
terrific posture.  It's been a long time since I've seen them,
(I graduated from high school in 1980)
but I assume they have had no recurvature problems.

I know that in California there is a Scoliosis foundation
which offers support and information on scoliosis.  I imagine
just about every state must have something like that and
there may even be a national organization.  

Good luck

Sandra Distefano

|>
|> None of these helps my constant backaches.  Some days the pain is
|> so bad that I cannot move or do anything else.
|>  
|> What kind of surgical procedures are available?

The standard sugigal procedure is called arthrodesis. The affected vertebrae are fused by a bone graft. It means your spine isn't as flexible as before, but the pain is definitely improved.

-philippe