Part 3: Patient Presentation and Examination for Scoliosis
I.Presentation A common candidate for a Scoliosis examination is in elementary through high school years of age. This person may or may not have pain, depending on the severity of the Scoliosis. Some patients may also complain of hip, knee, ankle or foot pain. If there is presence of pain, it is usually associated with exercise and long periods of sitting. Other common symptoms are headaches, chest tightness with taking a deep breath, and shoulder pain. During a posture examination for Scoliosis, the patient is viewed from the front, back and sides looking for deviations versus normal. From the front, shoulders may be unlevel, head may be tilted or turned more to one side, and one foot may be turned out to the side. From the back, the shoulder blades may not look symmetrical: one may be higher or protruding out from the body. This may also cause the ribs to protrude out. From the sides, the patient may have a forward protruding neck and a back that is compensating for th...