June is Scoliosis Awareness Month, and this year we got a chance to make many people more aware through a short WRAL/WRAZ TV news interview at Hey Clinic yesterday morning!

Kayleigh Forbes and her mom, Christina shared their experience going through conservative and then surgical treatment for scoliosis, and Kayleigh’s full recovery back to cheerleading, and now getting ready to head off for college.

Dr. Hey shared the things to look for for parents to check out on their children/adolescents, looking for shoulder and hip asymmetry, and looking for “humps” on the back with forward bend. 

These humps on the back can be measured using your smartphone free bubble level app.  If the angle of trunk rotation (ATR) is 5 degrees or more, an X-Ray may be helpful, and/or confirmation of your scoliometer reading with your pediatrician or primary care doctor.  Adults can also be checked for scoliosis, and have a 68% risk of curve progression during adulthood [Weinstein 1981, 1983], with curves less than 30 degrees much likely to progress.  Keeping the curve under 30 degrees during the growth years using conservative therapies like Schroth Physiotherapeutic Scoliosis-Specific Exercises (PSSE) and possibly bracing with Rigo-Cheneau 3D-CADCAM bracing can allow teens to start adulthood in the “green zone”, less than 30 degrees, which means they will likely finish life in the “green zone”, under 30 degrees with a good quality of life — preventing possibly decades of suffering and more invasive surgery as an adult.

We’ve gotten quite a few positive texts and messages from patients and friends on this scoliosis awareness message. 

Many thanks to everyone who helped, including Hey Clinic team members, the Forbes family, anchor Ken Smith and the entire WRAL team! 

Let’s get the word out and improve awareness, improve early screening and diagnosis to help improve and maintain quality of live for thousands of patients and families!