5 Scoliosis Questions You Need to Get Answers to ASAP

Newly diagnosed with scoliosis? Child recently diagnosed with scoliosis? Fully grown adult who was told not to worry about your small curvy spine as a teenager and now three decades later are looking for answers? Fused ages ago as a teen and now needing to address your scoliosis again?

Here are the top 5 things you need to get answers about to support your own scoliosis:

Question 1: Where are the curves in my spine?

One curve? Two? Maybe three?

Are they up top? Middle? Bottom? (AKA: Cervical, Thoracic, Lumbar, respectively)

Do they go left or right or both?

Knowing where your curve(s) are is critical to everything that follows. That’s the start of your personal Scoliosis 101.

Question 2: What degrees are my curves?

Scoliosis curves are measured by Cobb angles (calculated by doctors using your X-rays). The bigger the number, the bigger the curve. If you have more than one curve in your spine, each one will have its own Cobb angle. Know them so they can be monitored for changes.

Question 3: Where are my concavities and convexities?

Wait, what do those words even mean?!

A concavity is a dent. Think of it as having the word “cave”; an inset.

A convexity is the opposite! Something that balloons outwards, for example.

With scoliosis, the spine does not simply curve - it also bends and rotates. All these forces at play means that other body parts are impacted. Most have one side of their ribcage smaller (concave) that the other (convex). Lumbar curves also have a convex side and a concave side.

Bonus round: If a spine has both a thoracic and and lumbar curve, the concave/convex ribs are the opposite of the concavity/convexity in the lumbar.

Question 4: How can I adjust my breathing to support my spine?

Don’t try to learn this on your own. Every single body is different, and every single scoliosis is unique!

Scoliosis affects your breathing - just think of that one concave rib cage! Add on years of bracing, and your breathing can really be impacted.

The good news? You can retrain your breath. (Bodies are wild, but brains are wild too!!) Find a scoliosis-specific physiotherapist - locally on online, as long as it’s personalized for you). They will take into account your curve pattern, rotation, and needs to coach you into a new style of breathing.

Might sound like madness, but it’s not! The bonus? With the right education and targeted exercises, specialized breathing can help de-rotate your spine, and help expand that smaller ribcage. Wins, all-around!

Question 5: Where are my fusion levels?

This won’t apply to freshly diagnosed Scoli’s. But if you have had a spinal fusion surgery (or the new VBT surgery) you will want to know your fusion levels.

“What are fusion levels!?” I’m so glad you asked.

When scoliosis curves hit a certain size, the recommended path forward is often spinal fusion surgery (we’ll cover that in another post, don’t worry). The short of it is: a certain segment of the spine is “fused” together. You may hear Fusioneers (a term Tangled coined for all people walking around with metal rods in their spines) say things like “I’m T2-L1”, or “I’m T1-T8”. They’re not sharing strange zip codes… they’re saying which vertebrae in their spines are forever and always merged together.

If you have had a fusion surgery, you should know which levels you are fused at. Thjis will help inform everything from your workout routines, to figuring out why certain daily actions seem more frustrating than they should be, to informating any new PT, coach, or massage therapist so they know what they’re working with and how best to support you.

If your medical records are unavailable or you have forgotten, a specialist can review your X-rays and confirm your fusion level.

Want to learn even more answers to critical scoliosis questions throughout your journey? Check out the Shop page to get your full behind-the-scenes scoliosis guide, Tangled in the Curves: Real Life with Idiopathic Scoliosis. Turn Diagnosis into Direction.

Note: This blog is based on the author’s experience and opinion only, without any formal medical training. In no way should this blog replace professional medical advice.