when should bracing be done?

[cloggerx3]

Nikki-

Thank you very much for the encouraging advice. I know that i am very lucky to be caught somewhat early. I am keeping up with my normal activities, which contain marching band, clogging (not hillbilly style lol), and sometimes running. Good luck with your daughter's, hope ur 15yr old doesnt have to get a brace or surgery, and i hope ur 17yr old can get back in the game soon, and that ur 13 yr old wears the brace as told, just as i will . Thanks again for the encouragement.

>> LAuren (the daughter)

[just asking...]

similar question

i have a question similar to this so maybe i can ask it here..

my daughter ,15, went for a doctors check-up and the doctor said she had a slight case of scoliosis. she said that she has a slight curve and she may grow out of it. she also said that she dosent at this point need a brace or surgery but she should be checked about every 4 months or so to see hows its doing. about a week after the appointment my daughter started complaining of back pain in her lower back. could this be associated with scoliosis or something else? the pain is starting to go away but should i still be concerned?

[nikyergen]

Just Asking-Did you take your daughter to a GP or an Pediatric Orthopedic Specialist. There is a huge difference. My daughter had a significant amount of pain. Some will tell you there is no pain associated with scoliosis. We feel differently about it, simply because of personal experience. The first thing I would do is take your daughter to a Pediatric Orthopedic Specialist. Contact Shriners Hospital. You don't need a referral, give them a call and you can do the application over the phone. They have hospitals all over the US. Shriners is a Pediatric Orthopedic Hospital. There are lots of other benefits too. There is no charge for their services regardless of how much you make or how expensive the treatments may be, and your child receives treatment until the age of 21, if they are diagnosed before their 18th birthday. If you feel it is cost prohibitive for you to drive to your nearest Shriners Hospital, get hold of you local Shrine club and ask for assistance. They will assist in your gas/diesel, motel room, if you need one, and possibly meals if you need that too. Your daughter may well be done growing and her curves may not get any worse. Did the doctor tell you what degree her curves were. However, she will not grow out of it. As you saw in my previous post, we have three girls with scoliosis issues. All with different treatments. Hopefully, your daughter is done growing and her curves have stabilized and won't get any worse. But, do have her checked by a specialist. And, yes, a person can experience pain from scoliosis.

Nikki

[Attie]

Just asking...keep asking questions! I agree with Nikki...make sure your daughter is evaluated and diagnosed by a pediatric ortho who specializes in scoliosis. Reading your post I'm guessing it was her pediatrician who caught it? My daughter's pediatrician was the one who first caught her scoliosis during a routine exam and immediately sent us for an x-ray. (That was 2 years ago, 3 braces ago.) The way she caught it was by doing a visual check where my daughter stood with her feet together and bent at the waist with her arms hanging down towards the floor. We could "see" a difference in the symmetry of her back. Her curves were 17 at that point which is not that high but she began being seen by the specialist.

I'm not familiar with Shriner's first hand but it sounds like a good place and I've read about alot of kids receiving treatment there. Depending on your location I can recommend from experience the DuPont Hospital for Children in Wilmington, Delaware... it is excellent.

This can be so overwhelming and in the beginning it's hard to know just what to ask. Hopefully you won't need too many of these questions! Did your daughter have an x-ray, where is the curve (or curves), and what is the degree of curvature? Since your daughter is 15 an important question is how long ago did she start her cycle? Another important questions is where does she fall on the Risser scale which is used to determine skeletal maturity. As far as I know from our experience that can only be determined from the x-ray that shows the growth plate in the hip. When that is "filled in" and she reaches a Risser 5 she would be considered done growing (as long as there is no change in her height for a while, too).

It does seem like kids do have pain associated with their scoliosis even though up to now my daughter has not, thankfully. I would think it's better to err on the side of caution...a simple x-ray will answer many of the questions and give you a better idea of what's going on and where you need to go from here.

As I said, it can be very overwhelming and confusing, but sites like this one can be very supportive as well as informative. I hope all turns out well for your daughter! -Attie

[just asking...]

reply

thanks to both of you who replied. My daughter's pediatricition caught the curve but did not tell us to get it measured. She instead said to get routine check ups about every 4-6 months on the curve to see if it gets worse and if she will need bracing. She said that she did not need bracing or surgery at this point but should I should still get her curve measured?. She started her cycle at 13. and also if I should get the measure of her curve should I go to her pediatrician or a different doctor? thanks again.

[marmyte]

get the curve measured, and get it measured by a paediatric orthopaedic surgeon who specialises in scoliosis. make sure any xrays (unless they're bending ones) are taken standing up and don't let the radiologist try and manipulate her hips to get her to stand straighter, as this will make the xrays inaccurate. you need to know the degrees of curves - how else do you know whether or not they're progressing? ask the surgeon for her risser sign - this is a scale of 0-5 relating to how much space there is left in a growth plate and how you can get a rough calculation on how much longer your daughter will grow for. good luck

[nikyergen]

Just Asking-Use a pediatric orthopedic surgeon. You need to know the curves and risser score. They are so important. Your pediatrician doesn't know enough about scoli, and ours didn't either, to be able to track it. If caught early enough, a brace can slow down curves, and this is much better than surgery.

If you are in the U.S., you may want to look into Shriners Hospitals. Scoliosis treatment can get very expensive and they do all of their services for free to the children, regardless of the family income. They also specialize in spinal deformities. Check them out, or any good pediatric orthopedic surgeon.

Nikki

[Attie]

Just asking...reading the replies to your original post I think the message everyone, including myself, is giving you is solid advice. Even if your pediatrician isn't recommending your daughter to see a specialist and is willing to take a wait and see approach it would be in your daughter's best interests to get the x-ray and have a pediatric ortho who specializes in scoliosis (not just a general ortho) evaluate the situation. IF he/she says to monitor the situation and re-check in 4-6 months, fine. But, I agree with everyone else that recommendation needs to be made by a specialist.

Don't be put off by your pediatrician. Even though the fact that your daughter is 2 years past the beginning of her cycle, which is a good sign as maybe she is close to skeletal maturity, it would be better to KNOW what the curves are now and where she falls on the Risser scale and thse things can ONLY be determined by an x-ray and qualified scoliosis specialist. I have found that there can be a difference in the curve measurement depending on who reads the x-ray and measures the curve. After 3 years I choose to put my trust in my daughter's ortho who specializes in scoliosis rather than the radiologist. It's not that the radiologist isn't competent, but the scoliosis doctor just deals with scoliosis.

I hope that your pediatrician isn't making his/her recommendation on a financial basis. I would press the point with him/her that it is just the cost of an x-ray and a doctor's appointment and insist on it. There is a HUGE difference between hoping that everything is and will be okay and KNOWING what the situation is.

Let us know how you make out. Let's hope for the best, but know that there's alot of support if you need it. My prayers are with you and your daughter. -Attie

[just asking...]

Thanks to everyone who gave advice. I see now that I should get her curves measured just in case. I will let you know how she's doing after the appt.