Chiropractors and pre-growth curvature and rotation?

Susie - posted on 06/18/2009

I just found out through an MRI that my daughter has a syrinx 1-2 mm wide and from T3-T12. She did the contrast MRI later and did not find any tumors or mass. But I read up on syrinx's and found that it can be a reason for dragging feet. I'd try to go to a specialist if I were you. And get them to do an MRI of his brain and whole spine. We only had it done cuz of her up coming surgery. Since it is thin and long, she probably had it since birth and it won't be a problem. But wider ones can be even if they are not long. Also, they can actually cause scoliosis especially if they are in the neck area and around age 10 or under. ~Susie

Lynn - posted on 06/18/2009

My daughter easily broke bones so she was sent for a bone density scan. That scan showed she MAY have a tendancy towards scoliosis and we should keep an eye out. That was in May of 2007. At the end of Nov of that year she started complaining about shoulder pain. Nothing showed up on any tests. She then went through a major growth spurt and grew 6 inches over the next 2 months. As it was winter she was always wearing bulky sweaters. I happened to spot her on the way to the shower one day and discovered the hump on her right shoulder. She was diagnosed with a 56 degree curve with a twist causing her rib cage to be out of place making it hard for her to fill her lungs with enough air. It happened that fast. As her curve kept changing position with the angle and twists on a daily basis, chiropractors were afraid to brace her in case they locked her into a bad position. She was told she needed emergency surgery. Well emergency meant 9 months in the slow moving world of Sick Kids. By then she was at 64 degrees and the twist was a lot worse as well.



The surgery seems to have corrected the twist. The rib cage is slowly moving back into the correct position and she can breathe easier. However she will always have a slight visible hump to her right shoulder. They could not totally straighten her without breaking her ribs.



She is an amazing kid and doesn't complain much. She was a little sad that she would not be perfectly straight after all she had been through but she has lots of self confidence and doesn't hide her hump or surgical scar. She wears what she wants and doesn't care what other people think. How many 14 year old girls could do that.



So yes really check your son over if you notice a growth spurt as it could tip the balance with this condition.

Faith - posted on 06/10/2009

Thanks. He seems to like the adjustments. He won't see his ped again until August to get the referral to a ped ortho. I already know where he'd go since there's only 1 group locally, but we do have to wait for the referral though. I asked the ped at one of my other kiddos appts and she didn't have an opinion either way. Mostly, she didn't know. She said she tried to research it for one of her other patients before.

Does the habit/sompulsion to drag there feet when they walk have anything to do with it?

Susie - posted on 06/10/2009

Seeing a Chiropractor is good. It does feel good and help with misalignment. It is very important to see a Pediatric Orthopedist who also specializes in spine surgery. My daughter is almost 17. We have been dealing with this for 6 years. She has a backward C also. She is 56 thoracolumbar L3-T10 with rotation. She first wore the Boston Brace and then the SpineCor. Nothing would hold her curve because she also has a connective tissue disorder. No one can predict how they will progress. My daughter also has syrinix down her spine from T-3-T12. We just found that out yesterday from an MRI of her whole spine. She had her neck done 1 1/2 years ago and they did not find anything there. It is good to get MRI's also of head neck and whole spine. If cost is an issue, you should start with going to a Scottish Rite hospital. They are free and do an excellent job. Because we chose to use SpineCor, they could not see us for the brace was not tested enough. We did not see an Orthopedic surgeon as much as we should have. She will have surgery in Dec. if not sooner.