20 Dec Look Out for Scoliosis in Summer!
Empower Parents of Adolescents to Look Out for Scoliosis in Summer!
Scoliosis in adolescents can easily ‘creep up’ on parents and teens. Summer may be the first-time parents notice a change in the posture of their children with scoliosis. Or perhaps the adolescent themselves start to notice that clothes are not fitting well.
For example:
- Swimmers are not fitting evenly on the hips.
- A single strap falls down on one side of the shoulder more so than the other side.
- They struggle to find clothes that ‘fit well’ due to asymmetries developing.
- Hot weather means they wear less layers of clothing making body parts visible more often in mirrors.
- Summer brings a longer summer holiday break – less focus on school brings more opportunities to notice subtle or large changes in posture.
Why summer?
As we are in a period of warmer weather, it’s a great time to remind parents to keep an eye out for changes in the posture of their children. The children will be wearing less clothing, perhaps even often in swimmers, and so it’s easier for changes, such as uneven hips or scapulae, to be noticed.
Tips to help parents
Suggestions for clinicians encouraging parents to screen their children may include:
- Look for asymmetries, such as uneven shoulder height, when the child is in swimmers.
- Look out for when clothing, such as shorts, ‘don’t quite fit’ evenly on each side.
- Performing the Adams Forward Bend test on their own child when the child is in swimmers.
- Listen carefully if the child suddenly reports that clothing is not fitting well on one particular side, or they are struggling to find clothes that fit well.