Check Your Health- Scoliosis Awareness Month: Why Screening Matters for Kids

Khloee was 9 years old when a teammate at cheerleading practice noticed her back looked crooked as she bent over.

Khloee’s mom had been taking her to a chiropractor for a few months because she had been complaining of back and hip pain. After additional visits to the doctor and a round of imaging, it was shown that Khloee had a significant curve in her spine.

“I was really sad thinking about whether I would ever be able to cheer again, because that’s my happy place and like a second home,” recalls Khloee, now 12.

June is National Scoliosis Awareness Month. Pediatric experts say that detection is key to preventing complications including long-term back pain, and the need for more invasive procedures.

“Scoliosis is very common in the general population, especially identified in growth spurts in the early teenage years,” said Rajiv Iyer, MD, pediatric neurosurgeon for University of Utah Health and Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital. “Parent, teacher, coach and pediatrician awareness of this condition is imperative to the early identification of scoliosis, when interventions can be undertaken to prevent the curve from getting larger."

People with scoliosis have a spine that curves to the side greater than 10 degrees. Khloee’s spine had 36-degree curve when she first went to Primary Children’s Hospital for treatment.

Typically, scoliosis presents during the last growth spurt before puberty, affecting about 3 percent of teenagers. Kids who have it should be monitored closely to make sure the curve isn’t worsening. Severe scoliosis can cause the space in the chest to tighten and make it difficult for the lungs to function.

Symptoms may be painless at first, and include:

• Uneven waist
• One hip higher than the other
• One prominent shoulder blade
• Uneven shoulders
• Rotated or curved spine
• Ribs that protrude on one side of the body.

Most cases of scoliosis have no cause, but risk factors include family history of scoliosis, cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, Marfan syndrome or Down syndrome. Scoliosis in girls also is more likely to worsen than that in boys.

If a parent notices symptoms of scoliosis, it’s essential that the child is seen by a health care provider to determine whether monitoring or treatment is recommended.

Khloee’s treatment began with wearing a brace for 16 hours a day, in hopes of correcting the spine without surgery. But due to Khloee’s growth spurts, surgery was needed.

She received an innovative surgical procedure called vertebral body tethering (VBT) at Intermountain Primary Children’s Hospital. The procedure is designed to straighten the spine over time while the child grows, and allows for continued flexibility and movement, unlike rods, for example.

Khloee is back to cheerleading, tumbling, and thriving. She has grown 4 inches since the surgery, and continues to be monitored to ensure the VBT is keeping her back straight as she grows.