INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Scoliosis is the condition in which the spine bends to the left or right creating a curve
Kathmandu, June 29
With the aim of creating
awareness about scoliosis by promoting education and bringing together those affected by it, International Scoliosis Day is celebrated
across the world on the last Saturday of June every year.
Scoliosis is a condition in which the spine curves to the left or right, creating
The exact cause of the disease remains unknown.
Early treatment is necessary to prevent and correct the spinal deformity or else the curve
People with larger, untreated curves (over 45 to 60 degrees) are more likely to develop back pain, particularly in the lower back.
The
deformity is progressive, said Gaurav Raj Dhakal, Associate Professor of Spine Surgery at National Academy of Medical Sciences
Each month at least three patients are found visiting the National Trauma Centre for the treatment of scoliosis
There are many scoliosis patients who have no idea of the disease, according to Dhakal.
Patients visit hospitals only when the deformity
gets severe.
Severe condition of the disease increases treatment cost
Early diagnosis is therefore necessary, he added.
Children of any age can suffer from spine curvature
Infantile scoliosis occurs in children aged three or below
Juvenile scoliosis occurs in children between the age of four and nine
Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis occurs between 10 to 17 years of age.
Though idiopathic scoliosis can occur in both girls and boys, girls
are five to eight times more likely to have their curves increase in size along with their age, said the doctor.
Besides children, adult
degenerative scoliosis begins in adult patients due to degeneration of the discs, arthritis of the adjacent facet joints and collapse and
wedging of the disc space
Though adolescents with scoliosis feel no pain, adults with the disease will experience back pain along with deformity
Legs of adults with scoliosis could become weak due to nerve compression, according to the doctor.
Most adult patients or parents having
children with scoliosis note one or more changes such as the chest shifts to one side, one shoulder blade becomes more noticeable than the
other, unevenness of waist, one shoulder higher than the other, one hip higher than the other and unevenness of the front of the chest.
The
doctor said that it is advisable to look at children back so that parents can find the deformity at the earliest.
School screening programme
could be an effective measure to trace the disease in children.
Adam forward bend test can be conducted where a patient bends forward,
starting at the waist until the back comes in the horizontal plane, with the feet together, arms hanging and the knees in extension.
The
palms are held together.
The examiner stands at the back and looks along the horizontal plane of the spine, searching for abnormalities of
the spinal curve.
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