Scoliosis: Life, Support & Friends

TranS1 has pioneered a revolutionary approach to access. The AxiaLIF (Axial Lumbar Interbody Fusion) System includes surgical instruments for creating a safe and reproducible pre-sacral access route to the L5 - S1 vertebral bodies. The AxiaLIF technique features novel instrumentation to enable standard of care fusion principles, distraction and stabilization of the anterior lumbar column, while mitigating the soft tissue trauma associated with traditional lumbar fusion through open surgical incisions. Riley News, in the USA, recently ran a story about a 71 year old mean who had been treated using the less invasive X-Lif procedure. This procedure is done through small stab incisions on the sides to gain access.  Patinets lie on their side for this procedure, allowing the surgeon to remove the affected disc/s and replace with spacers, the surgeon will then lie the patient face down, to allow him to create small stab incisions where he can place screws and fuse the bones with rods. ...

ScoliosisJournal report that a specific scoliosis classification correlating with brace treatment: description and reliability Connect with Scoliosis patients on our Scoliosis Yahoo! support group Authors: Manuel D Rigo , Monica Villagrasa and Dino Gallo Background Spinal classification systems for scoliosis which were developed to correlate with surgical treatment have historically been used in brace treatment as well. There has previously not been classification systems developed specifically to correlate with brace design and treatment. The purpose of this study is to show the intra- and inter- observer reliability of a new scoliosis classification system correlating with brace treatment. Methods A novel classification system ("Rigo Classification") was developed in order to define specific principles of correction required for efficacious brace design and fabrication. The classification includes radiological as well as clinical criteria. The radiological crite...

Abstract From the time of its initial, informal meetings starting in 1980 to its formal creation in 1990, the IRSSD has met on a bi-annual basis to discuss all aspects of the spine and associated deformities. It has encouraged open discussion on all topics and, in particular, has tried to be the seed-bed for new ideas. The members are spread around the world and include people from all areas of academia as well as the most important people, the patients themselves. Most notably, application of the ideas and results of the research has always been at the forefront of the discussions. This paper was conceived with the idea of evaluating the impact made by the IRSSD over the last 30 years in the various areas and is intended to create discussion for the upcoming meeting in Montreal regarding future focus: "We are lost over the Atlantic Ocean but we are making good time." Introduction Ever since the days when deformities of the spine were considered from a topographical poin...

Grady County Health officials have announced (23 January 2010) that they will be visiting middle schools during this semester to perform Scoliosis screenings. All I can say to that is yippeeee! I hope some of the awareness we are battling to create everyday is starting to make a difference, Scoliosis screening is a must and should be brought to schools across the World! A simple test can make a big diiference to children and could prevent the need for surgery. Prevention is always better than the cure, and as there is no cure for Scoliosis, screening is a must! The statistics for the United States claim that around 10% of children are affected by Scoliosis. Information about the screenings will be sent to parents about two weeks before the screenings take place.

Author: Laura Buchholz Although there is some evidence that adolescents with scoliosis may benefit from wearing hard or elastic braces to correct spinal curvature, research thus far has failed to prove definitively that bracing works, the investigators conclude. The evidence for bracing is weak, as is the evidence of any long-term benefits of bracing, Dr. Stefano Negrini of the Italian Scientific Spine Institute of Milan, Italy, and colleagues report in the latest issue of The Cochrane Library, a publication of the Cochrane Collaboration, an international organization that evaluates medical research. Negrini and his team searched the medical literature for studies comparing braces with no treatment, other treatment, surgery, and different types of braces. From a pool of 1,285 titles, the researchers read 128 full texts, and found only 2 that fit their criteria. One study involved 286 girls; some wore a brace, some received electrical stimulation, and some received no tre...

I have been a member of the Scoliosis Assocation UK for a while now and I receive their magazine and keep up to date with what is happening in the UK with regards to Scoliosis. For those who are not already members then I would visit Scoliosis Association UK , doesn´t matter if you are in the UK or abroad, they will accept members from anywhere, just like Scoliosisnutty does. Their magazine covers fund raising events that you can get involved with, the campaign fund, regional news and their secretaries, accounts from people going through diagnosis, surgery, a section for children called "Twist and Shout" and a feature at the back with letters to the editor, it really does help keep people connected. In their issue number 81, November, 2009, I noticed that my blog was featured and I was gobsmacked, I never expected them to feature me but their noticeboard page has a little bit about me and the blog I run, I wanted to share this with you, I have scanned the page where I ...

Author: Katherin Kahn The use of braces to correct excessive curvature of the spine, or scoliosis, in adolescents is still an area of controversy — and is likely to remain that way until there is better evidence, concludes a new review of published research. Although some evidence points toward a benefit from using braces, research has failed to prove definitively that they work. Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis — curvature of the spine in which the cause is unknown —affects about 1 percent to 12 percent of the general population. Scoliosis is much more common in girls and is more likely to be severe in girls. About 10 percent of children and teenagers who have scoliosis will require treatment, based on the severity of the spinal curvature. Others can have monitoring without treatment to see if the spinal curve worsens. In severe scoliosis that remains untreated, lung, heart and spine damage might occur in adulthood. “Bracing is regarded as effective by some and as useless b...

American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons Discuss Scoliosis with other patients on our scoliosis support group Orthopaedic surgeons are optimistic about recent improvements in operative treatment of very young children suffering from scoliosis severe enough to consider surgery, even for those under the age of five years. For decades, spinal fusion surgery has been the prescription for severe scoliosis. The significant drawback of early fusion is that growth of the spine stops and this, in turn, interferes with the development of the lungs and chest cavity. "Scoliosis surgeons are exploring opportunities to treat a child's chest and spine to allow continued growth," reports B. Stephens Richards, MD, moderator of a media briefing on scoliosis treatment advances on Friday, February 16 at the Academy's 74th Annual Meeting. "Although the majority of scoliosis surgical patients present in early adolescence when spinal growth is no longer an issue, there are some v...

On the group we have been talking about prevention vs treatment for Scoliosis which opened up a whole new discussion thread, I wanted to share those thoughts and chats here, we discussed gene therapies, where does Scoliosis come from, do we know yet? The discussion started as a result of the social networking campaign that is circulating for breast cance to raise awareness about breast cancer by asking women to update their status with one simple word: the color of their bra. The email message going around stated "some fun is going on.... just write the color of your bra in your status. Just the color, nothing else. And send this on to ONLY girls no men .... It will be neat to see if this will spread the wings of cancer awareness. So, the question is, why is Scoliosis more common in females than males, what is the cause and why is treatment more common than the prevention of Scoliosis? "Could it be that it affects more women than men because of our puberty patterns such...