Structural Scoliosis Essay

An Overview of Scoliosis “Scoliosis refers to a lateral curvature of the spine, thus, scoliosis is a deformity rather than a specific disease or disorder.” (Salter, 1999, p. 366) The deformity is diagnosed in 2%-3% of the population, usually between early childhood until full bone maturity. (AANS, 2016) Scoliosis occurs equally in the number of males and females between the ages on 10-15, but females are shown to be eight times as likely to have the size of their curvature develop to the point that treatment is needed. (AANS, 2016) Scoliosis can be classified as either nonstructural or structural scoliosis. Nonstructural scoliosis is reversible and repairable by treating the cause of the problem. These issues include but are not limited to differences in the length of legs, spinal lesions, and abdominal lesions. Structural scoliosis is an irreversible fixed curve that doctors treat on an individual basis. Structural scoliosis is broken down between four different types; these are idiopathic scoliosis, osteopathic scoliosis, neuropathic scoliosis, and myopathic scoliosis. (Salter, 1999) Data collected by the National Scoliosis Foundation (NSF) (n.d.) states that “Despite physicians trying to treat this spinal deformity for centuries, 85% of the cases are classified as idiopathic.” (Information and Support, para. #5) These idiopathic …show more content…
The doctor conducts this test by having the patient bend forward at the waist to a 90-degree angle. This exposes any abnormalities in the curvature of the spine. If a deformity is identified, additional radiographic tests like an X-ray, CT scan, CAT scan or MRI would be required to provide and accurate diagnosis as to the severity of the diagnosis. A curvature measuring more than 10 degrees is considered a positive diagnosis for scoliosis, 25 to 30 degrees significant, and 45 to 50 degrees severe. (AANS,