Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ercan Hassa, an Egepol Hospitals Orthopedics, Traumatology, and Spine Surgery specialist, stated that the curvature of the spine above certain angles is called 'Scoliosis' and said that early diagnosis and treatment are important, especially in children in the developmental age.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ercan Hassa stated that in scoliosis, the spinal structure that holds the body on the legs can curve sideways in an S or C shape, and this can cause multiple problems, both cosmetic and physiological.
IT IS ALSO SEEN IN CHILDHOOD
Hassa, who stated that scoliosis should be examined under 4 different headings, said, 'The neuromuscular type accompanied by nerve diseases that we observe in childhood, the congenital type accompanied by congenital bone anomalies, and the 'idiopathic' scoliosis, which is the type that we frequently observe and whose cause cannot be determined and occurs with development during the child's growth period, constitute the 3 important scoliosis types of childhood. Some of these curvatures can progress in adulthood depending on various factors and constitute a part of adult scoliosis. Idiopathic scoliosis of childhood is examined under three headings as the infantile period between the ages of 0-6, the juvenile period between the ages of 7-10, and the idiopathic type scoliosis of the adolescent period. Rapid growth -gaining height, increase in sitting height- is observed in 2 different age periods of childhood (ages 5-6 and the beginning of adolescence). "These are the age periods when the rate of increase in scoliosis curvature is the highest. As the bone matures, the rate of increase in curvatures decreases. A spinal curvature at an early age and with a high angle is our most feared scenario, because these curvatures can increase rapidly," he said.
"Shoulder asymmetry, an S-shaped curvature when looking at the back from behind, asymmetry of the shoulder blades, a hump-like protrusion observed in the back and/or waist area when bending forward, and a one-sided protrusion in the lower parts of the rib cage when looking from the front are physical symptoms of scoliosis," he said.
CORSET AND PHYSICAL THERAPY GIVE SUCCESSFUL RESULTS
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ercan Hassa, who stated that scoliosis seen in the developmental period can be treated with a certain rate with corset and physical therapy methods, said: “The incidence of early-onset scoliosis is approximately 3 percent. 3 percent of these scoliosis, which is a very low rate, is treated with surgical intervention. The greatest power we have in this treatment is early diagnosis. Especially in school-age children, the results of corset application are satisfactory at certain angles (<40 degrees). Observations made by parents while bathing and/or dressing their child can detect the symptoms of spinal curvature in children. When used in combination with corset use and specific exercises called Schroth exercises, the success rate can increase. Parents who have such doubts about their children should consult a spine surgeon they trust and get information about diagnosis and treatment methods. Because early diagnosis can eliminate the need for surgery, after all, surgeries inevitably have some important risks.”
HEAVY SCHOOL BAGS INCREASE THE RISK OF SCOLIOSIS
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ercan Hassa, who noted that external interventions made during the rapid development period of children shape the bone, said, “For example, if children who go to school carry a bag heavier than 7/1 of their weight on one side of their shoulder, this may increase the risk of spinal curvature. We encounter similar situations in sports activities where weights are lifted, such as weightlifting. Many cosmetic and physiological problems may occur in advanced and untreated scoliosis. Scoliosis has negative visual consequences such as an asymmetrical body and bad posture. Due to this posture, muscle spasms and pain can be observed in the muscles on the opposite sides of the curvatures in the back muscles due to the height difference. Cosmetic problems and corset use can also lead to social problems, especially in children in the developmental age. It is important to state here that we know that scoliosis above a certain curvature angle (we can think of it as 40 degrees) can progress and cause significant problems in the lungs and heart when left untreated. It can lead to vital risks such as slowing down development, stopping lung development and decreasing cardiac reserves.”
CONSULT A SPECIALIST PHYSICIAN
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Ercan Hassa continued as follows: “We examine two-way scoliosis radiographs taken while standing to make a diagnosis. In this way, we detect the curvatures in the back or waist area and calculate the angles. We also take into account the bone maturity of the patients and evaluate whether the angles will increase or not. According to this evaluation, if the patient who will be a candidate for surgery is very young, we use growing rod systems that allow height growth until lung development is complete. After this method, we prefer the fusion method (the corrected segments are made into one piece by establishing bone bridges with each other) to correct the spine at a certain angle. If the lung development of our patient who will undergo surgery is already complete at the time of application, we can directly apply fusion surgeries. In addition, as another surgical method, string scoliosis treatments, which have made quite a splash in the last 2 years, are applied although they have not yet been accepted all over the world. It should be stated that these methods can be applied to a limited group of patients. In light of all this information, it is important to start with a spine surgery specialist for the diagnosis and appropriate treatment method for scoliosis.”
