1.1.1 Pre-Midterm Anatomy - Back

Front 1

Define Scoliosis, Kyphosis and Lordosis:

Back 1

Scoliosis: [Greek: meaning from skolios, “crooked”] is a medical condition in which a person's spine is curved from side to side. Although it is a complex 3-dimensional deformity, on an x-ray, viewed from the rear, the spine of an individual with scoliosis may look more like a “S” or a “C” than a straight line. Scoliosis is typically classified as aeither congential, or idopathic, or neuromuscular (having developed as a secondary symptom of another condition, ex: “spina bifida, cerebral palsy, or physical trauma”)

Kyphosis: “Hunchback” [Greek: kyphos, a hump] is a common condition of a curvature of the upper back. It can be either the result of degenerative disease (such as arthritis), developmental problems (such as Scheuermann's desease), osteoporosis with compression fractures of the vertebrae, and/or trauma.

Lordosis: “Swayback or saddle back” is a medical term used to describe an inward curvature of a portion of the vertebral column. Two segments of the vertebral coumn, namely cervical and lumbar, are normally lordotic, that is, they are set in a curve that has its convexity anteriorly (the front) and concavity posteriorly (behind), in the context of human anatomy.