Scoliosis is a condition that causes the spine to curve to the left or right side. Sometimes the curve resembles the letter S or C. During growth, the spine develops natural curves at the cervical (neck), thoracic (chest), and lumbar (low back) regions. These normal curves work as part of the spine's shock absorbing system to spread out the stress created by body movements. These curves can be seen on an x-ray taken from the side of the body.
Scoliosis causes the spine to curve in the wrong direction. A normal spine, when viewed from behind, is straight from the neck to the buttocks. In a back affected by scoliosis, the spine is not straight up and down. The spine may curve to the left or to the right. The curves are measured in degrees. In many cases, the curves are minor. Another aspect of scoliosis is rotation. The disease can cause the bones in the spine (vertebrae) to turn. In the chest area (thoracic spine), rotation can force the rib cage to turn out of position.
oni abt 5-10% of adolescents will get this medical condition... dunno y i'm so lucky, haha... but apparently my family is lucky coz my sister oso got the same prob (there's a tendency dat this is inherited). usually scoliosis is treated when u r in the growing stage, like u've to wear a brace to prevent further deformity. but i'm alr way past dat age, so dun think it'll affect my health, jus ur body structure ba... like one side of my shoulder is higher than the other side, so when i wear my bra, the 2 strapes r actually of different length and i tend to lend/tilt to 1 side even when standing straight. but i read dat the distortion of the rib cage can restrict the lungs, causing breathing problems and possibly heart disease in later years. Progressive scoliosis may produce a cosmetic deformity and incapacitating back pain during adult life. Research has shown that, on the average, adults with advanced (untreated) scoliosis tend to retire earlier and die younger than the general population.
hmm... maybe i shd go back to my specialist again...
jun