Scoliosis, Causes And Types

Scoliosis - this is a disease of the musculoskeletal system, in which the human spine is twisted in this or that direction.

Special medical literature has long described some disturbing signs, by which you can determine whether you yourself or one of your relatives is suffering from this disease. Even if you notice only one of the following listed signs, be sure to select a date for a visit to a specialist. So, the scoliosis symptoms include:

• The human shoulders are at different heights, one shoulder blade protruding farther than the other.
• In relation to the pelvic bone, the head is not directly above it, but to the left or right of the central axis.
• It seems as if the thighs of a man are raised and sharply protrude.
• The rib cage of the chest is not uniform in height.
• The waist appears to be "uneven"
• Skin over the spine looks unusual (dimples, hairy areas, skin color can also be changed)
• The body is skewed in this or in the other direction.

Treatment of scoliosis begins with the identification of the cause, but in most cases it is not possible to pinpoint the cause of scoliosis accurately. Scoliosis with such an unknown cause is called idiopathic. Idiopathic scoliosis often develops in children aged 10 to 12 years, as well as in adolescents during the period of increased growth - a growth jump (the so-called adolescent scoliosis).

Idiopathic scoliosis can be caused by a genetic predisposition to it. And yes, statistics confirm this, since 30 percent of children suffering from idiopathic scoliosis have relatives (parents, brothers or sisters) who also have scoliosis.

In general, the causes leading to the development of scoliosis in humans can be divided into two main groups: structural and non-structural. In scoliosis of structural genesis, the spine, often due to a congenital anomaly, is bent by an arc at a certain angle. This type of scoliosis occurs in about 5% of all cases.

In addition, structural scoliosis is often associated with medical conditions such as neuromuscular diseases (cerebral palsy, poliomyelitis, muscular dystrophy), connective tissue diseases (eg Marfan syndrome), congenital malformations (congenital half-vertebral development), joint disease For example, rheumatoid arthritis). This type of scoliosis can develop for no apparent reason, and as a consequence of trauma, infection or a tumor that affects the spine or spinal cord. Neurofibromatosis is a hereditary disease that leads to the development of spinal cord tumors, and also increases the risk of developing scoliosis.

Unstructural scoliosis, also known as "functional scoliosis," in turn, is not caused by structural abnormalities of the spine, but develops as a result of temporary pressure on it. Acute inflammatory diseases (including appendicitis), uneven development, as a result of which one leg remains slightly shorter than the other and strong muscle cramps in the area next to the spine - all this can cause functional scoliosis. Often scoliosis of this type occurs when the pathological condition is cured, which is the pathogenetic cause of the disease under discussion.

Infantile scoliosis (developing in children under 3 years of age, more often affecting boys than girls) and juvenile scoliosis (affecting children from 3 to 10 years old) can be both idiopathic, and be caused by a known cause. These states are relatively rare. In this case, mild cases of such scoliosis can go on by itself (if they are idiopathic), or after treatment of the previous scoliosis development of the disease.