When seen from the front most spines are not perfectly straight, but when the spine curves or twists excessively it is called scoliosis (from the Greek word for "crooked").

WHAT CAUSES SCOLIOSIS?
In 85% to 90% of cases the cause of scoliosis is unknown and the vertebrae, discs, ligaments, tendons, and muscles all appear to be normal (although these parts may develop abnormalities). In 10% to 15% of the cases the cause of scoliosis is tumor, infection, a neuromuscular disease such as cerebral palsy or muscular dystrophy, a birth deformity or disc problems. Further deepening the mystery of scoliosis is the fact that no one knows why some minor curves get worse whereas about 90% do not. However, it should be pointed out that it is not true, as commonly thought, that poor posture is a cause of scoliosis or that women with scoliosis have more problems carrying babies to term than women who do not have the disease.

UNKNOWN CONTROLLING FACTOR
Apparently, there is some unknown controlling factor or influence in scoliosis that causes healthy parts of the body to asume an unusual shape. Some people feel that there may be a hereditary component to the disease since there is a higher incidence amoung relatives than in the general population. However, studies have not ruled out emotional factors that could as well cause occurence to run in families. If there is anything that all scoliosis researchers can agree on, it’s that few of them agree.

NEUROLOGICAL DISTURBANCE
New research on scoliosis shows the cause or important contributing factor to be a disturbance or defect in the area of the nervous system that controls posture, body balance, and positioning. In one study, researchers were able to identify by neurological tests alone nearly 95% of the scoliotics.

MEDICAL TREATMENT FOR SCOLIOSIS
Bracing the spine was initially used for providing lasting improvement in scoliosis. The optimism arose from studies showing that curves straighten an average of 50% of the time with brace application. When bracing was followed in the long term, however, a gradual loss of correction was observed, particularly after the patient was weaned from treatment. One study compared adolescent girls who were on a brace with 32 who were untreated. According to the study: "There was no statistically significant difference between the groups."

Electrical stimulation appears to be ineffectual and plaster casts have often been found to be emotionally scarring.

According to Robert Mendelsohn, M.D.: "Scoliosis is not serious unless the curvature of the spine is severe, but it is overtreated almost as often as it is overdiagnosed. If your child is diagnosed as a victim of scoliosis, don’t accept surgical procedures or even bracing without first exploring all of the less radical treatment alternatives."

THE CHIROPRACTIC APPROACH

Chiropractors do not treat disease, scoliosis included, but they do correct the vertebral subluxation complex (a condition that interferes with the proper functioning of the nervous system and the body as a whole). A body without subluxations is in a better position to resist abnormalities and diseases of all kinds, including scoliosis. Recent research suggesting that scoliosis may be caused by a neurological defect reinforces the validity of the chiropractic approach; the nervous system must remain free of structural damage in order for the body to be healthy.

According to Scott Banks, D.C., the role of chiropractic with scoliosis is supported by a "long history of empirical evidence..." Fred Barge, D.C. in Ideopathic Scoliosis: Identifiable Causes, Detection, and Correction, gave 22 examples of cases of adolescent idiopathic scoliosis with significant improvement. Barge further stated that "traditional chiropractic concepts and techniques have shown decent clinical results in scoliosis control, reduction, and correction."

Chiropractic research however, has been limited and the final word is not in on this mysterious condition. However, the evidence increasingly tells us that many scoliosis sufferers could benefit from chiropractic care.