Hi! I am new, and will give a little background. I was diagnosed at 11 as having Multiple Epiphyseal Dysplasia, which in essence makes the joints enlarged or something similar at the epiphyses of the bones. No big deal for me, it just made me have slightly enlarged knuckles, a crooked finger and wide feet. Around 12 I developed lateral scoliosis, but the determined it was not enough to get fixed.
Fast forward until now, at age 54. I have not seen an orthopedist for my scoliosis at all over the last 40 years. I had no issues and no pain. Now though, I have noticed my waist leans to the right when I sit, and when I lie in bed, I am ok on that right side, but when I lay on the left side, it is uncomfortable. It feels like I am in a "c" shape, and it won't bend straight(sorry, did any of that make sense?). This seems to have caused my shoulder girdle to then lean back toward the left.
At the same time, I absolutely cannot lie flat. I seem to have a huge gap under my midsection when I do, and my head is extremely uncomfortable stretching back to lie flat. I normally use 2 pillows to keep my head comfortable if I am on my back.
All of these changes has caused digestive issues and breathing issues. I am a short person at 5'2", and I feel like my whole ribcage is "sinking" down to my hip bones. I have no space between my lowest rib and my hip bone anymore.
So, what it boils down to is I am pretty sure my scoliosis has gotten way worse in the last few years, and now I believe I also have some kyphosis. My question is, can I go straight to an orthopedic surgeon to be looked at and tested with? Or, do I need to go to an orthopedist to have the testing/diagnosis, and then go to an orthopedist?
Fast forward until now, at age 54. I have not seen an orthopedist for my scoliosis at all over the last 40 years. I had no issues and no pain. Now though, I have noticed my waist leans to the right when I sit, and when I lie in bed, I am ok on that right side, but when I lay on the left side, it is uncomfortable. It feels like I am in a "c" shape, and it won't bend straight(sorry, did any of that make sense?). This seems to have caused my shoulder girdle to then lean back toward the left.
At the same time, I absolutely cannot lie flat. I seem to have a huge gap under my midsection when I do, and my head is extremely uncomfortable stretching back to lie flat. I normally use 2 pillows to keep my head comfortable if I am on my back.
All of these changes has caused digestive issues and breathing issues. I am a short person at 5'2", and I feel like my whole ribcage is "sinking" down to my hip bones. I have no space between my lowest rib and my hip bone anymore.
So, what it boils down to is I am pretty sure my scoliosis has gotten way worse in the last few years, and now I believe I also have some kyphosis. My question is, can I go straight to an orthopedic surgeon to be looked at and tested with? Or, do I need to go to an orthopedist to have the testing/diagnosis, and then go to an orthopedist?
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