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Scoliosis - A Patient Primer.

Edited By: Theodore A. Wagner, M.D.
Last updated Wednesday, February 09, 2005

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Causes and effects

What causes scoliosis?

The majority of scoliosis is called idiopathic, which means that the medical community does not know what causes it. There have been recent studies that suggest that there is a genetic component to adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. Congenital scoliosis is a result of abnormal formation of the spinal column. Neuromuscular scoliosis results from abnormal nerve function which causes abnormal muscle activity around the spinal column. New onset adult scoliosis is usually caused by degeneration of the discs and joints in between the vertebral bodies, and can be exacerbated by osteoporosis. Sometimes, a scoliosis can develop after a spine fracture or infection due to asymmetry caused by the injury or the treatment of the injury. Scoliosis also can develop after spinal surgery, which is called post-laminectomy scoliosis.

What does scoliosis do?

By a rotation about the long axis of the spine, abnormal curvatures develop in the spinal column. The spine becomes curved in the frontal plane (looking at the patient face on)- in patients without scoliosis the spine is straight in this plane. In the sagittal plane (looking at the patient from the side) patients without scoliosis normally have a thoracic kyphosis (hump) and a lumbar lordosis (swayback). In the scoliotic patient these curves flatten out.

Surgery for scoliosis at the University of Washington

If you are interested in making an appointment to discuss this procedure, you can request an appointment using our online referrals website. To request a referral online, please click here. You can also call 206-598-4288 (outside the Seattle area: 800-440-3280) to make an appointment.

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