Story from 6/27/07: "New Brace Offers Hope For Scoliosis Patients" [quote]14-year-old Rachel Blank is an avid gymnast. So when she found out that she had scoliosis, she was devastated. RACHEL BLANK: I was freaking out about it because I thought I had to have the brace, maybe even the surgery[/quote] [quote]MARINARO: Scoliosis, it's the lateral curvature of the spine. It constricts your body, your breathing, it affects the digestive system. HENSEL: Dr. Ron Marinaro recommended a new back brace for Rachel, called the SpineCor Brace. The old brace was stiff. It kept the curvature from getting worse, but it was rigid, so it made the muscles weaker. SpineCor is completely different. It has straps for flexibility. It can be worn during exercise. As a result, the muscles get stronger. The flexible elastic bands allow for total freedom of movement, so exercise is still possible. And since the bands are adjustable, it can grow with the child. MARINARO: The bands put direct pressure and torque on the spine where the tension is most needed, almost like a levering effect in straightening your body out.[/quote] http://www.knbc.com/health/4655933/detail.html Watch the video: http://www.knbc.com/video/4656127/index.html Rachel does walkovers and back handsprings with the brace on, and on the beam too. Gymnastics is great for scoliosis because it works all the muscles and also increases flexibility. Forums on scoliosis: scoliosis for kids: http://www.spinekids.com kids/adults, National Scoliosis Foundation: http://www.scoliosis.org

I heard about that brace. Gymnastics is like a muscle brace - great for everyone, especially those with scoliosis. Muscle and flexibility is a great combo.

Interesting. Because scoliosis is associated with joint laxity, it may not be surprising that scoliosis would be fairly common in sports that emphasize flexibility; 12% of the rhythmic gymasts in one study showed evidence of scoliosis. Tanchev PI, et al. Scoliosis in rhythmic gymnasts. Spine. 2000 Jun 1;25(11):1367-72 Meyer C, et al. Why do idiopathic scoliosis patients participate more in gymnastics? Scand J Med Sci Sports. 2006 Aug;16(4):231-6.

I meant artistic gymnastics. In artistic gymnastics you are building muscle and flexibility, which makes a great difference - both are worked on, and maybe you could say muscle strength is even more worked on, vs. in rhythmic gymnastics where it is really super hyper flexibility more than the focus/stressing on muscles. Just compare their body figures. I heard that about rhythmic gymnastics and scoliosis too. Do you have the links to the articles?

The theory behind SpineCor is that it does allow you flexibility so that you don't lose it, but also moreover, it allows you to work your muscles and avoid muscle atrophy that a hard brace would cause from just holding you, and not letting your muscles do the work. Here are the articles from pubmed (great resource!): "Why do idiopathic scoliosis patients participate more in gymnastics?" Meyer C, Cammarata E, Haumont T, Deviterne D, Gauchard GC, Leheup B, Lascombes P, Perrin PP. 2006 Aug link [quote]The influence of physical and sporting activities (PSA) on idiopathic scoliosis (IS) is still obscure. The aim of this study was to investigate whether such an influence exists and if so, to determine its characteristics. Two hundred and one teenagers with IS and a control group of 192 adolescents completed an epidemiological questionnaire. Those practising gymnastics were more numerous in the IS group than in the control group. Moreover, the practice of gymnastics was chosen before IS was diagnosed. As gymnastic activities are considered neither as a therapy nor as a precursor of IS, the distribution observed could be linked to a common factor that both increases the likelihood of IS and favors the practice of gymnastics. Joint laxity (JL) may be such a common factor, and was therefore tested (wrist and middle finger) on 42 girls with IS and 21 girls of a control group. IS patients, practising gymnastics or not, showed a higher JL than the control group practising gymnastics or not. Furthermore, the groups practising gymnastic activities did not show higher JL levels than the other groups. Children with a high JL could be drawn toward gymnastics because of their ability to adapt to the constraints of this sport. Girls with a high JL may therefore be prone to developing IS. The fact that most teenagers with IS practise gymnastics could be related to a higher JL.[/quote] There are related links on the right side column of the page there. "Scoliosis in rhythmic gymnasts." Tanchev PI, Dzherov AD, Parushev AD, Dikov DM, Todorov MB. 2000 Jun link [quote]STUDY DESIGN: An anamnestic, clinical, radiographic study of 100 girls actively engaged in rhythmic gymnastics was performed in an attempt to explain the higher incidence and the specific features of scoliosis in rhythmic gymnastic trainees. OBJECTIVES: To analyze the anthropometry, the regimen of motion and dieting, the specificity of training in rhythmic gymnastics, and the growth and maturing of the trainees, and to outline the characteristics of the scoliotic curves observed. An etiologic hypothesis for this specific subgroup of scoliosis is proposed. SUMMARY OF BACKGROUND DATA: The etiology of scoliosis remains unknown in most cases despite extensive research. In the current classifications, no separate type of sports-associated scoliosis is suggested. METHODS: The examinations included anamnesis, weight and height measurements, growth and maturing data, eating regimen, general and back status, duration, intensity, and specific elements of rhythmic gymnastic training. Radiographs were taken in all the patients with suspected scoliosis. The results obtained were compared with the parameters of normal girls not involved in sports. RESULTS: A 10-fold higher incidence of scoliosis was found in rhythmic gymnastic trainees (12%) than in their normal coevals (1.1%). Delay in menarche and generalized joint laxity are common in rhythmic gymnastic trainees. The authors observed a significant physical loading with the persistently repeated asymmetric stress on the growing spine associated with the nature of rhythmic gymnastics. Some specific features of scoliosis related to rhythmic gymnastics were found also. CONCLUSIONS: This study identified a separate scoliotic entity associated with rhythmic gymnastics. The results strongly suggest the important etiologic role of a "dangerous triad": generalized joint laxity, delayed maturity, and asymmetric spinal loading.[/quote]