The number of primary and secondary school students suffering from scoliosis in my country has exceeded 5 million. How to prevent and treat it?

When we describe a person as being in high spirits and having good posture, we often use the phrase "holding your head high and chest out". The key is to stand straight. But if a person's spine is the same as the one shown on the big screen, how can he stand straight? What is even more worrying is that the consequences of this scoliosis are far more than just affecting spirit and posture.

Recently, a 13-year-old girl from Hengshui, Hebei was sent to the hospital for treatment due to severe scoliosis. After diagnosis, the doctor said that this was caused by long-term bad sitting posture. If not intervened in time, it would cause serious consequences such as uneven shoulders, different lengths of legs, and body deformities.

Of course, this is not the only child. According to the early epidemiological survey data of the Spine Disease Prevention and Control Committee of the Chinese Preventive Medicine Association, combined with authoritative magazines and domestic expert consensus, it is estimated that the number of primary and secondary school students in my country with scoliosis has exceeded 5 million, and is still increasing at a rate of about 300,000 per year. Scoliosis has become the third largest disease that endangers the health of children and adolescents in my country after obesity and myopia.

What bad habits can cause children to suffer from scoliosis? How can parents detect it in time? What serious consequences will scoliosis bring? Let's find out.

What is Scoliosis?

Following obesity and myopia, scoliosis has become another invisible killer that endangers children's health. What exactly is scoliosis? Which type of scoliosis are children and adolescents prone to? Is scoliosis caused by poor sitting posture?

Liu Haiying, leader of the National Scoliosis Prevention and Control Working Group for Children and Adolescents and director of the Department of Spine Surgery at Peking University People's Hospital: Scoliosis is a deformity caused by the deviation of the spine from the normal midline. It is actually accompanied by rotation of the spine, like twisting a twist. It is a rotation, and the other is lateral kyphosis. As a whole, it is called scoliosis.

Experts say that there are many causes of scoliosis, the most common of which are congenital scoliosis, idiopathic scoliosis, and neuromuscular scoliosis.

Liu Haiying, head of the National Scoliosis Prevention and Control Working Group for Children and Adolescents and director of the Department of Spine Surgery at Peking University People's Hospital: According to classification, the most common type of scoliosis in children and adolescents is the so-called idiopathic scoliosis, and the cause is unknown so far. Generally speaking, during the adolescent development period, when you grow up, when the growth and development is the fastest, it will appear an abnormality of the spine, a scoliosis, which accounts for about 80%. Poor sitting posture or carrying a backpack improperly, the height of the stool, including the height of the table and chair, these are all factors. The most important factor is that it is a special disease, idiopathic, that is, it appears as children grow and develop at a certain age.

Scoliosis is 1.5 times more common in adolescent girls than in boys

Experts tell us that scoliosis is a three-dimensional structural deformity that is more likely to occur during adolescence. Epidemiological surveys show that women at the peak of their growth and development period are more susceptible to the disease, with an incidence rate that is 1.5 times that of men.

How to check at home whether your child has scoliosis?

I think at this moment, parents must be anxious to know whether their children have scoliosis. I will teach you a few simple methods to check yourself at home.

There are two ways to check for scoliosis at home. One is the internationally accepted and simple flexion test, which requires the person being tested to put his heels together, straighten his legs, and bend his trunk forward 90 degrees.

Liu Haiying, leader of the National Scoliosis Prevention and Control Working Group for Children and Adolescents and director of the Department of Spine Surgery at Peking University People's Hospital: If it is flexed forward 90 degrees, it is easier to see whether the two sides are symmetrical. If there is scoliosis and rotation on the spine, it will form a deformity that we professionally call a razor back, a hump-like deformity.

In addition, you can also use the five lines of "four horizontal and one vertical" to determine whether scoliosis occurs. If any one of these five lines is abnormal, it means that the trunk is asymmetric.

Liu Haiying, head of the National Scoliosis Prevention and Control Working Group for Children and Adolescents and director of the Department of Spine Surgery at Peking University People's Hospital: Look from the back to see if the two shoulder joints are level; also look at the lower angle of the shoulder blade at the back to see if it is level; also look at whether the waist dimples are symmetrical; and we can feel the iliac crest at the back to see if they are in a straight line. These are four horizontal lines, four parallel lines. The vertical line is the spinous process you touch at the back, and the entire line is in a straight line. If it deviates, or the horizontal line is asymmetrical, or one horizontal line is high and the other is low, then you should suspect whether the spine has scoliosis.

What are the serious consequences of scoliosis?

I would like to remind you that if you think you may have scoliosis through the above two methods, you should go to the hospital for further examination. Experts say that any lateral curvature of the spine greater than or equal to 10° is scoliosis and should be treated as soon as possible, otherwise surgery will be required if the situation is serious. So what serious consequences will it bring if scoliosis is left untreated?

Scoliosis not only affects the patient's body shape, but also causes muscle tension and back pain. When scoliosis is severe enough, it can also cause nerve damage, compress the lungs, and even affect breathing.

Liu Haiying, leader of the National Scoliosis Prevention and Control Working Group for Children and Adolescents and director of the Department of Spine Surgery at Peking University People's Hospital: After middle age, the spine, like other organs, is aging, and some people develop adult degenerative scoliosis. The deformation and hyperplasia of the spine can cause stenosis of the spinal canal, which in turn causes symptoms such as low back pain and lower limb pain.

What bad postures can easily lead to scoliosis?

Experts say that, apart from idiopathic scoliosis, which is common in adolescents, other types of scoliosis are often related to bad postures. So which postures and movements will increase the load on the spine, and which ones should we avoid doing often?

Liu Haiying, leader of the National Scoliosis Prevention and Control Working Group for Children and Adolescents and director of the Department of Spine Surgery at Peking University People's Hospital: For example, when lying down, the pressure between the spine and between the vertebrae is 1. When you stand up, the pressure in the middle is 2, and when you sit, the pressure is 4 times. If you sit in a bad posture, with your butt sticking out and your waist bent forward, the load on the lumbar sacral region can reach 8 times. When you bend over and carry heavy objects, the load is even greater, even more than 10 times. It's okay once, but over time, the intervertebral disc will age, degenerate, and proliferate prematurely, and then degenerative scoliosis, slippage, stenosis, and other problems will occur.

Reporter: Maybe it’s not right for me to stand like this with my hands on my hips, right?

Liu Haiying, leader of the National Scoliosis Prevention and Control Working Group for Children and Adolescents and director of the Department of Spine Surgery at Peking University People's Hospital: If you stand with your hands on your hips or your arms are asymmetrical, in addition to the unbalanced load on your spine, your hip joints, including one knee joint, will also be unbalanced and asymmetrical, which will accelerate damage to the joints.

my country has included scoliosis screening in routine physical examinations for students

It is understood that my country has included scoliosis screening in the routine physical examinations for each school year or for new students. Early detection and early diagnosis are the best prevention and treatment strategies for scoliosis. Experts also remind that physical exercise is also important for preventing scoliosis, especially the training of the waist and back muscles. Hanging on the horizontal bar, playing basketball, swimming, etc. are all good choices.

Editor-in-charge: Sun Shanshan

Source: CCTV News Client