The word Scoliosis is derived from the Greek: skoliosis meaning “crooked condition” (Harper 2010 on-line reference). It is a medical condition which involves a person’s spine having a curvature to the left or right side.

Scoliosis is classified as:

• Congenital i.e. caused by vertebral anomalies present since birth), or idiopathic where a cause unknown has lead to the development) these are further sub-classified as:
• According to when onset developed e.g. Infantile, Juvenile or Adolescent
• Neuromuscular i.e. having developed secondary following another condition e.g. Physical trauma, cerebral palsy, spina bifida and spinal muscular atrophy.

While various causes have been implicated with scoliosis, there is no consensus among scientists as the cause of scoliosis. It is widely considered to have multifactorial causal agents (Kouwenhoven J., Castelein, R., 2008). The degree of curvature can be variable and this condition is more commonly diagnosed amongst females (e.g. for Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis (AIS), female : male ratio is around 7:1). AIS is recognised as having a genetic component (Good, 2009).

The Scoliosis Research Society, reports that the prevalence of AIS is 2% to 3% in the general population, almost 10% of whom require some form of treatment, and up to 0.1% of whom will require surgical intervention (Lonsrein 2006). Reichel (3003) considers that except for extreme cases, AIS does not typically cause any health problems during growth.

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Links

Scoliosis Association UK

http://www.sauk.org.uk/

NHS Scoliosis Information Page

http://www.nhs.uk/Conditions/Scoliosis/Pages/Introduction.aspx

BBC Information Page

http://www.bbc.co.uk/health/conditions/scoliosis2.shtml

British Scoliosis Society

http://www.britscoliosissoc.org.uk/

References

Good C. (2009).

 "The Genetic Basis of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis,"

 Journal of the Spinal Research Foundation, Spring 2009 Vol 4.1.

Harper D. (2010)

Online Etymology Dictionary.

 Accessed 30 January 2010. Dictionary.com

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/scoliosis

Kouwenhoven J., Castelein, R., (2008).

 'The Pathogenesis of Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis'.

 Spine,   vol. 33, no. 26, pp. 2898-2908.

Lonstein J. (2006)

Scoliosis: Surgical versus non-surgical treatment.

Clin Orthop Relat Res 2006; 443: 284-59

Reichel D. Schanz J. (2003).

Development of Psychological aspects of scoliosis treatment.

Pediatr rehabil 2003; 6(3-4): 221-5.

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