Scoliosis is an unnatural sideways curvature of the spine.  It tends to happen in children and teenagers as they grow and can be unnoticed for most of people’s lives.  Occasionally scoliosis can be severe to the point that it causes pressure onto the discs and nerves as well as organs that can disrupt how someone lives as well as cause pain.  It tends to be mostly asymptomatic for most but can be aggressive in others.  Sometimes you can have an adult that has scoliosis later in life that is caused by disc issues, trauma and/or disease.  These would be a more severe case that can arise.  Not everyone that has scoliosis will have pain or disruption of functional movement.

Some of the things that people with scoliosis may notice from this issue are, but not limited to:  One shoulder is higher than the other, one shoulder blade sticks out more than the other, rib cage may be larger on one side than the other, one side of the pelvis/hips can be higher than the other, pelvic rotation.  You may notice that with some of the above issues there is muscular pain, joint pain and sometimes even nerve pains that persist even with some treatments.

The best course of action for this issue is to seek professional help.  A professional will be able to evaluate, diagnose, and build a treatment plan specific to the individual and the issue.  A proper treatment plan for this issue should include manual therapy to help decrease muscular, tendon, and ligament irritations which will help decrease pain.  Joint mobilization/manipulation will help keep the joints moving properly and decrease tension and stiffness.  Stability and strength programming will help improve support and balance to the muscles for decreased risk of irritation.  And finally, build a self-care program for the individual on how to manage this issue on their own.