Scoliosis is a partially hereditary spinal deformity that most commonly appears in girls and makes itself apparent at puberty during the early teenage years. It is often pegged "the curvature of the spine". It can take the shape of an "S" and encompass the entire spine. It can also be more of a "c" and be in just the upper or lower part of the spine. Scoliosis can lead to a hunched back, and respiratory problems among other issues; corrective measures, however, can be taken to limit the problem if caught early and provided the body is still growing. Once your child stops growing, it becomes a much more difficult matter to correct. Early detection of scoliosis is the key to correcting the deformity so your child can lead a normal life.
Instructions
1. Instruct your child to bend down, without a shirt on (bra is okay) and touch her toes. While she is doing that, check the alignment of her spine using your eyes and a finger down her spine. Go from where the spine connects with the skull all the way down to the tailbone. Does it look straight? Get the opinion of your second set of eyes. It's sometimes difficult to tell; write down anything you have doubts about or might be questioning. This is the scoliosis test that school nurses commonly do in schools, usually at about seventh grade.
2. Stand your child straight at "attention" while her shirt is still off and her back is towards you. Look at the alignment of her shoulders and shoulder blades as well as her hips. Does one shoulder appear to be higher than the other? Are the hips aligned? Another way you can check for this is to stand her up against a wall and mark the wall with a pencil at the level her shoulders go. Are they even? If you marked the wall, get out a tape measure to find out for sure; your eyes might deceive you, but the tape measure won't. Make sure you make the mark at the same place for each shoulder. If you don't, it won't be even, but it's caused by human error, not scoliosis.
3. Watch your child's hips as she walks, particularly when she walks quickly. Do her hips appear to stay aligned and does she appear to just glide along, or does she appear to waddle like a duck? Waddling is another possible sign of scoliosis. If you are not certain whether she has a normal gate when she walks, compare it to several other people. If necessary, have a person or two walk side by side with her for a direct comparison.
4. Make an appointment with your family doctor if any these tests seem to indicate possible scoliosis; it's better to be safe than sorry. Your family doctor can make a formal assessment (possibly through an x-ray analysis) and recommend you to a pediatric orthopaedic doctor if necessary. If they do not recommend another doctor for further analysis and possible treatment, call around. There are not many doctors who treat scoliosis and you don't want to waste your time seeing someone who will not be able to help you.
Tags: your child, does appear, family doctor, tape measure, when walks, your eyes