NationStates Jolt Archive

Or someone with some knowledge of spinal disorders?

Can someone tell me what it's called when the spine starts to curve to one side?

My boyfriend has been having sever back pain lately and he went to the doctor and his doctor said that his spine was asymmetrical and bending over to his right... if someone can tell me the name of such a disorder or even some information about it that would be great. If you just know the name then that would be a good starting place to do my own research...

It's called scoliosis.

Or someone with some knowledge of spinal disorders?

Can someone tell me what it's called when the spine starts to curve to one side?

My boyfriend has been having sever back pain lately and he went to the doctor and his doctor said that his spine was asymmetrical and bending over to his right... if someone can tell me the name of such a disorder or even some information about it that would be great. If you just know the name then that would be a good starting place to do my own research...
scoliosis.

Depending on how bad it is, he might be able to correct it with the help of a chiropractor, with a brace, or at an extreme, with surgery.

The doctor didn't know? o.0

Specialists to see might include an osteopath, a phsyiotherapist, or a chiropractor. Make sure you choose a licenced one (particularly if you're going to a chiropractor, as they don't always need to go through the same sort of training the others require) because backs are nasty things to stuff up.

Well, if the doctor told him, he didn't tell me. I'm not really sure how much he really wants to talk about it (he's not online now anyways) but I'm worried and want to know what's going on with him and see if there's anything at all I can do.

He was telling me that there wouldn't be much they could do and that they gave him some painkillers and if it got really bad there would be surgery though...

I thought that scoliosis was when the spine was escessively curved back and front though, rather than side to side. Learn something new every day, I suppose.

Take the man to a Chiropractor, don't try to solve it yourself.
But fyi it could possibly be scoliosis, or Spinal curvature.
I'm no doc but i'm making somewhat educated guesses.

Well, I wouldn't try to actually fix it myself. He may be going to physio, though since it's been delisted or is being delisted from ohip, I don't know if he's going to be able to go...

I was just hoping that there would be some way I could help, you know, do soemthing at least to make him feel better. Perhaps if there are reassuring statistics on recovery or something then that may help, even... I wouldn't imagine that I could fix it, but I do want to make him feel better even if I can only do so in a minor way. It might also be reassurign for me too... I mean, I don't want anything bad to happen to him. :(

what they said.

the Merck Medical Dictionary (Home Edition) says that treatment with braces or surgery is usually necessary. They also say that it usually happens in older children and that treatment has to start early.

here we go:

Scoliosis is an abnormal curvature of the spine. About four percent of all children aged 10 to 14 years have detectable scoliosis. About 60 to 80 percent of all cases occur in girls. Scoliosis may occur as a birth defect. When it develops later, no cause can be found in 75 percent of the cases. The rest are caused by polio, cerbral palsy, juvenile ostioporosis, or other diseases.

Fatigue in the back may be felt after prolonged sitting or standing. It may be followed by muscular pain in the back and eventually more severe pain. Most curves are convex to the right in the upper back and to the left in the lower back.

Usually, scolisosis is treated by an orthopedic specialist. A brace or plaster cast may be worn to hold the spine straight. Sometimes electro-spinal stimulation is preformed. Sometimes surgery in which the vertebrae are fused together is needed. A metal rod may be inserted by the spine during surgery to keep the spine straight until the vertebrae are fused.

Scolisosis and its treatment can cause psychological problems, threatening an adolescent's self image. The alternative is permanent deformity however. Counseling and support can help.

I thought that scoliosis was when the spine was escessively curved back and front though, rather than side to side. Learn something new every day, I suppose.

A friend of mine has a slight curve to the side -- it's also called scoliosis.

webmd.com has a lot of good information. Here's a link:

[URL=http://aolsvc.health.webmd.aol.com/content/tools/1/anatomy_spine_curvature.htm]

your bf has an appointment with a specialist doesnt he?

i dont think its common to develop a curvature of the spine as an adult. does he have osteoporoisis? does he take steroids for a chronic condition?

if you dont have any good answers in a week, message me a reminder and ill ask my husband about it, hes in bangladesh for a week and i may not be able to ask him before then.

He didn't seem to be much in the mood to talk about it earlier (can't say I blame him) so I don't know if he's got any appointments. He got some painkillers though.

He doesn't have osteoperosis (he's 22... he may not drink his milk much, but it doesn't seem likely at his age) he doesn't take steroids for anything and until recently he didn't have any conditions that would be chronic.

I was browsing around on webmd and it said something about limb asymmetry being a cause, he's only got one calf muscle due to a tumour when he was an infant, but I'm not sure if that would do that (but what do I know about this, really) He was also injured at work and could only really do anything with one arm for a while...

The picture they pain on webmd seems to be a bit rosier than he was acting like earlier though, which is a good thing... he was talking about being whell chair bound and having horrific surgery, but webmd was saying that it's like a week's stay in the hospital, which doesn't seem too bad for spinal surgery...

sounds to me like he needs a second opinion.

at 22 with no reason to suddenly develop a spine problem, there is probably something else going on. get him to an orthopedist, that doc will be able to know whats real and what isnt pretty quickly.

Originally Posted by Dakini
I thought that scoliosis was when the spine was escessively curved back and front though, rather than side to side. Learn something new every day, I suppose.
That's called kyphosis or lordosis, depending on the direction of the curvature.

That's called kyphosis or lordosis, depending on the direction of the curvature.
Yeah, that was actually in one of the links I was referred to, they had rather explanatory pictures too..

I should perhaps point out that I cant' really get him anywhere, we're in a long distance relationship... I cna only encourage him to go see other doctors. I can only guess that he's going to see a specialist, especially as this is a rather major thing. I have to wait for him to come back online to talk to him. (My long distance got cut...)
Although according to webmd, 80% of all occurances of scoliosis have no apparant cause...

I should perhaps point out that I cant' really get him anywhere, we're in a long distance relationship... I cna only encourage him to go see other doctors. I can only guess that he's going to see a specialist, especially as this is a rather major thing. I have to wait for him to come back online to talk to him. (My long distance got cut...)

Gee, that kinda sucks. Well he did take the initiative to see a doctor in the first place, so that's always a good sign.

I'm sure his doctor recommended him to a specialist who can help, and possibly to a chiro or physio for treatment.

As an aside, my mother had serious back problems and she had acupuncture treatment, which helped her with the pain for a while afterwards. It can be a good non-drug pain-relief method, although of course it doesn't fix the underlying cause.