SPONDYLOS menu →
Infantile idiopathic scoliosis occurs in children before the age of 3 and is characterized by the presence of curvatures of the spine to the left most or right, S-shaped or C.
It is considered more common in boys than girls.
Most cases resolve, but some can also be aggravated in a very serious distortion.
The most severe cases coexist with Hip Dysplasia and Plagiocephaly.
Diagnosis
It usually occurs in the first six months of life and for reasons not yet understood, it has been found that children who develop scoliosis before the age of five are more likely to have cardiopulmonary disorders in childhood.
It needs to exclude other diseases such as congenital scoliosis, the syndrome Arnold Chiari (with associated dysplasia of the hips), neurological and cardiological diseases.
Diagnosis in Infantile Scoliosis is made by:
1- Clinical examination
2- Radiographs
3- MRI and possibly
4- 3D Computed Tomography
5- Heart ultrasounds
Treatment
If we exclude other conditions, the infant comes into frequent monitoring. If the scoliosis is self healing and is a worsening scoliosis should get into treatment.
If it does not worsen, the child should be monitored until the end of development, especially during the phase of rapid development.
Treatment was made previously, in a middle severity scoliosis, with the Dennis Brown cots or the Kalibis straps.
Today the use of special thermoplastic braces is the treatment of choice.
Although it seems hard at the thought that an infant should wear brace for at least three years, it has been shown in practice that they grow naturally.
They can play and perform all the activities of their age without limitation, as a brace at this age become part of his life and they get used easily.
In severe cases with strong worsening scoliosis is to apply, under general anesthesia, plaster casts and their frequent change.
