Scoliosis Blog

It seems a bit repititous to say that "another month has gone by" but its true.  We continue to stride along creating a healing environment to address postural and scoliotic issues.

I stayed up quite late a few nights ago to write this blog but somehow deleted the completed page before saving it.  It was a good lesson... always save and backup.

When we were building the clinic, our builder; Blair, reported that the studio would make a great party venue for a ballet party. My daughter Gabrielle turned 7 last week and she requested a gymnastics party.  Both Shana-Lee and myself are gymnastics coaches and a gymnastics party she had.  It was wonderful seeing 21 little girls MOVING in the studio we created.

This month I received Martha Hawes updated book called Scoliosis and the human spine.  I also received Nancy Schommer's book Stopping Scoliosis as well as David Wolpert's book Scoliosis surgery.  The are all available through the American scoliosis assoc. here

Although not unexpected, it seems that the majority of the patients I am seeing have curve profiles around 40 degrees plus. They are all self referred or word of mouth referrals...Therefore.. these patients are probably in the group of probably or possibly heading towards surgery and as a last resort are willing to try physio because they have nothing else to lose.  Reading the latter 2 books explains why there is such a reluctance to use physio as an option in idiopathic scoliosis treatment but reading the first book (Hawes) also provides fascinating reading of why it should be explored.  I somehow don't seem to mind being classed as "you have nothing to lose by doing Schroth therapy" but I do have concerns when the argument claims "you have nothing to gain by doing schroth therapy".

Dr Rigo, on our intitial day of training, stressed that Schroth therapy is only one aspect of treatment and that we work in conjunction with all the other treatment providers. Martha Hawes is quite scathing in her thoughts regarding the "wait and see" approach to scoliotic curves.  I don't agree with all her comments but there seems to be some logic in this.  You might have nothing to lose by doing Schroth therapy and you might have something to gain (even if its only "muscular postural improvement and treatment of the parents psyche") but you definitly have nothing to gain by doing nothing.

We have been seeing quite a few adults over the last month.  They differ from the adolescent patient in that their primary complaint is one of pain.  It is important to note that the pain is NOT related to curve profile or whether they have had surgery or not.  ie. a patient with a small curve might reports a great deal of pain whereas one with a large curve will not.  Interestingly, idiopathic scoliosis in the adolescent is characterised by NO PAIN (although some authors disagree with this statement).

The treatment of the adult scoliotic is intersting as it might not be the curve that is causing their pain.  They may, like 80 of the general population be suffering from "normal" musculoskeletal back pain.  However they may not be... If my new patient reports in the history that they have, with limited success,  already been treated with appropriate phyio, chiro or osteo.. etc. Then I have tended to commence treatment using Schroth based therapy.  Results have been very positive..  quite a few of my patients are saying that when they do their exercises and adopt a better posture then it assists to resolve their pain.  The goal is now to get them to maintain their corrected postures for great periods of the day.