Align Clinic - Exercises and Positions That People With Scoliosis Should Avoid

Living with constant back pain can be exhausting. Unfortunately, back pain is one of the most common pains in the world. Discovering the source of back pain is crucial for finding the right treatment. But also for avoiding activities that can further damage your spine. 
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Several things can cause back pain. Ranging from lumbar spondylosis to disk herniation and spinal stenosis, the diagnosis can vary. For people who have scoliosis, back pain can be just one indicator that it’s high time to visit a professional like an orthotist. 

Most people choose to ignore this pain and continue their life as usual. The most common misconception is that if you’re doing your exercises regularly, your back will get stronger and better over time. 

However, this isn’t true. 
Even though some exercises can help you with your back pain, others should be avoided entirely.

Scoliosis - Symptoms and Causes

Before we move on to the dos and don’ts, let’s look at the symptoms and causes of scoliosis. Recognizing the signs in time can help you prevent any further damage to your spine.

For most people, scoliosis is diagnosed in early childhood. The doctors notice the visible back abnormality during the after-birth medical examination. For people who develop scoliosis later on in life, it’s harder to detect it since it causes almost no pain. And the further it goes unnoticed, the more damage it causes to the spine.

The most common symptoms of scoliosis include:

• Protruding shoulder blades
• Uneven waistline
• One hip is higher than the other.
• Eyeline is slightly tilted.
• Ribs are more protruding on one side. 

To understand what causes scoliosis, you must first understand three main classifications of this condition. The cause of scoliosis is determined based on these classifications. So, scoliosis can be:

1. Idiopathic
2. Congenital
3. Neuromuscular

Idiopathic scoliosis is, unfortunately, the most common form of this condition. Over 80% of scoliosis cases are idiopathic, meaning that the cause cannot be identified.

Scoliosis, which occurs due to embryological deformity of the vertebrae, is called congenital scoliosis. 

The rarest form of scoliosis is neuromuscular. This type of scoliosis is connected to diseases like cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, and spina bifida.
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Consult With a Professional

If you have any reason to believe that you have scoliosis, it’s essential to consult with a professional as soon as possible. Any kind of exercise or continual physical activity that isn’t approved by a doctor can cause further damage to your spine. 

The most common three ways in which doctors determine if the patient has scoliosis are by using:

• Observation - The first thing that any doctor does is inspect the spine through thorough observation in different positions (while the patient is walking or bending in different directions).
• Scoliometer - With this device, the doctor determines if there’s a spinal curvature and how severe scoliosis is with the patient.
• X-Rays - After observation and the scoliometer show that the patient’s spine has significant curvature, the doctor will recommend an X-ray of the spine. The X-ray will provide the doctor with a precise image of the spine’s condition.

Depending on these exams, the doctor will determine the best possible treatment for your condition.
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Available Treatments For Scoliosis

Not all cases of scoliosis are the same. Therefore, there isn’t a universal treatment for scoliosis. Depending on the severity as well as the type of scoliosis, treatment could include:

1. Surgery - Spinal surgeries like spinal fusion, growing-rod insertion, and hemivertebra removal are recommended to patients with the serious condition of scoliosis. 
   
   
2. Bracing - Scoliosis brace is the usual treatment for patients with a milder form of scoliosis. Scoliosis brace for adults will prevent the spine from further curving. Patients who are diagnosed with congenital scoliosis are the ones who are usually recommended with scoliosis bracing for adults. 
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3. Physical Activity - If the patient is diagnosed with a milder form of scoliosis, their treatment will also include a physical activity like exercise or supervised physical therapy. 

However, people with scoliosis or any type of back injury should avoid some types of exercises.
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5 Exercises and Positions That Should Be Avoided

Certain exercises and activities can even worsen your condition if you have scoliosis. They can make the symptoms worse or even cause other injuries to your spine. 

If you have scoliosis or any form of back pain that hasn’t yet been diagnosed, make sure you avoid the following activities:

• Reading books or looking at your phone or tablet with your neck bent forward.
  
• High-contact sports like football and basketball, where another player can cause you to fall or unintentionally hurt your back. 
  
• Jumping and running. The spine receives repeated impacts during these activities, and with an injured spine, this can cause severe damage to it. Also, constant horseback-riding or trampoline jumping can cause the same effect. 
  
• Torso extension that can be found in some yoga positions, or ballet and gymnastics maneuvers. 
  
• Weight lifting or even carrying heavy things around the house isn’t recommended to people with scoliosis. With these activities, there is an additional pressure that compresses your spine even further. Deadlifts, lifting weight over your head, and squats should be avoided.
  

However, not all patients have the same type of scoliosis. So the best way to know what you can or cannot do is by consulting with a doctor. ​

In Conclusion

If you have any doubt about having scoliosis or any other back injury, be mindful of the activities and exercises you practice. They can cause severe damage to your already injured spine.

The most successful scoliosis treatments include surgery, scoliosis braces for adults and children, and supervised physical activity. Whether you’re someone who has back issues or in need of a scoliosis brace, make sure to contact us as soon as possible, and we’ll help you in any way that we can.