Course: Biology 205 Instructor: Dr Danil Hammoudi Topic Scoliosis 1
Definition Scoliosis is a medical condition with no particular causative agent. It occurs when the spinal cord is curved and it curves either from the middle portion or it may go sideways. In this situation, the victims back is either going to be curved into an S or C shape or it could even sometimes have no particular shape (irregular).this disease affects the spine of many children,adolescents and even adult. It is said to be more common in girls than boys and also can be seen at any age it is said to be hereditary meaning that people with this illness most likely would have children with same illness. Types of scoliosis 1. Infantile idiopathic scoliosis: Affects persons are less than 3 years old. most times present at birth and also called congenital. 2. Juvenile idiopathic scoliosis: Scoliosis that develops between 3 and 10 years of age 3. Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis: Affects people that are over 10 years old 4. Neuromuscular: In this type of scoliosis, there is a problem when the bones of the spine are formed. Either the bones of the spine fail to form completely, or they fail to separate from each other. This type of scoliosis develops in people with other disorders including birth defects, muscular dystrophy, spinal bifida, physical trauma, cerebral palsy, or Mar fan s disease. 5. Degenerative: This occurs mostly in older adults. It is caused by changes in the spine due to arthritis. 2
Pictures Below are some sample pictures to look at. Fig 1:This is an S shaped scoliosis Fig2: This is an example of a mild form of scoliosis. 3
Fig3:S shaped type Diagnosis /Screening If I were a school nurse in middle school and responsible to screen the children for scoliosis I will ask questions including if there is any family history of scoliosis, or if the child has had any pain, weakness, or other medical problems. I will get vital signs each visit for compares during future visits, I will listen to heart and lung sounds for any abnormality and look out for (SOB) shortness of breath as this diseases has the tendencies of decreasing ones breathing pattern as well as causing chest pains. I will run a Neurological check on the child in the process will assess for any back pains as some scoliosis can cause back pain. And also, I shall do some physical assessment, a head to toe assessment, which will include, looking at the curve of the spine from the sides, front, and back. Each child will be asked to undress from the waist down till I can better see any abnormal curves. The child will then bend over trying to touch their toes. I will also look at the symmetry of the body to see if the hips and shoulders are at the same height. And any skin changes will 4
also be identified that can suggest scoliosis due to a birth defect. Also I will measure the person's height and weight for comparison with future visits as we know, the more growth that a person has remaining will increase the chances of scoliosis getting worse. I will also look out for other symptoms such as, unfitting clothes or may be that pant legs are longer on one side that the other. Scoliosis may cause the head to appear off center or one hip or shoulder to be higher than the opposite side. In any case and if I suspect a child to have this disease then will ask the child to return for an additional examination in a few months to see if there is any change, or obtain an order from the doctor for X-rays of the back. Or refer the child to their personal physician for follow up. Finally, When the X-rays are obtained, together with the doctor, we can make measurements from them to determine how large of a curve is present. This can help decide what treatment, if any, is necessary. Measurements from future visits can be compared to see if the curve is getting worse. References: 1. http://www.webmd.com/osteoarthritis/guide/arthritis-scoliosis 2. http://www.medkaau.com/vb/showthread.php 3. health.allrefer.com/health/scoliosis prognosis. 4. http://www.spineuniverse.com 5
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