Idiopathic Scoliosis: Evaluation of Screening and Treatment

Scoliosis is a rather common condition of the back. Scoliosis is a deformation of the spine consisting of a lateral curvature combined with a fixed rotation of one or more vertebrae and a rotational deformation of those vertebrae1 (Figure 1.1). The severity of scoliosis can be assessed by X-ray and is expressed in the size of the Cobb angle, which is the angle between the upper most inclined vertebra and the lower most inclined vertebra. Someone is being diagnosed to have scoliosis when the Cobb angle is larger than 10 degrees1. The most common type of scoliosis is idiopathic scoliosis (IS). As the name indicates, the cause of that type is unknown. There is, however, a known relationship with gender, age, maturity and familial predisposition. Progressive scoliosis occurs 5-10 times more often in girls than in boys2. Genetic research showed a significantly higher prevalence of scoliosis in first-degree family members3-5. Today, it is not fully known which genes are involved, but research on this topic is ongoing. Other types of scoliosis include neuromuscular scoliosis and congenital scoliosis. Neuromuscular scoliosis can occur in patients with neuropathic or myopathic conditions, such as cerebral palsy, poliomyelitis and Duchenne Muscular disease1. Congenital scoliosis is caused by the presence of vertebral anomalies, which develop during pregnancy. This thesis will deal with idiopathic scoliosis.

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