i'm 26 and i have a back problem and my doctor refer me to physical therapy. i'm not sure if i do have scoliosis. has she tried physical therapy?

Juli

yes she had. They told her about the surgery, but we are looking for both the positives and negatives about having it so young.

how about thinking of doing chiropractor? has she tried that also? I wish i could help but i don't know how to.

I wish you good luck.....

Juli

I agree with the chiropractor idea...there was a DRs show where they demonstrated this works, just not in one appointment.  You might really want to look into this before surgery IMO.

Melissa.

Please DO NOT go through surgery.

     40 yrs of my experience with Spinal Column problems, I had to turn down the treatment for the patients with  steels on the both sides of the spine.

    After the surgery most people complain the back pain later years, but nothing can be done to help but to take tons of pain killers to get by everyday for the rest of thier lives.

13 yrs of age, IT IS POSSIBLE to correct the column NOW.      Please consider other options such as Chiropractor.

I am 25 and had the surgery when I was 11.  I had no choice but to have the surgery my curves (double curve) had both progressed from 10 degrees to over 50 degrees in less than a year.  I now lead a happy and  healthy live with my husband and new baby girl. If your daughter is 13 she is probably done growing and the surgery could save her life in the long run if her curve is as bad.  My father choose not to have the surgery when he was a teenager because the doctors at that time told him that since he was done growing his curve would stop progressing but now that he is 55 his curves has progressed to almost 90 degrees.  He is in constint pain and his ribs are crowding his heart and lungs.  Physical therapy will not correct the curve, it may help ease the pain that she may experince. There is also a brace that is available if your daughter's curve is not as bad that may help.  She could wear the brace for a few years to stablize the spine but may have to go back to the orthopedic doctor for check ups to make sure the curve hasn't progressed any further. 

Thanks to all of you for your help and your support. Every idea will be taken into consideration. It is a hard choice to make! THANK YOU.

I have severe scoliosis -- a 59 to 66 degree curvature -- and my spine is completely fused, except the top six cervical, which I wish could be fused.  I had my first surgery at age 9.  I've had five fusions and I had the Harrington rod put in by the doctor who invented it.  I think I was the first person, child or adult, who had it done.  A few years later, it was removed because it broke.  Not because it was bad or anything, but because after the six weeks in bed, I was too active and when it broke, it was too painful and they decided that wasn't really helping that much.  Now, I don't have any rods in.  I tried exercise from age 5-9 and that was not working, so then came the surgeries.  The last surgery when I was 21, I was in bed for six months and I have had NO trouble with my back since then.  When I had severe pain and I thought my back had been broken, they took xrays and found out I had trashed my SI (sacroiliac joint(s)) and my spine was completely intact.  So, this probably didn't help any, just me ranting or babbling, but surgery does help if no other option works.  The best of luck to your daughter and you.