In this edition of “Doc Talk”, host Dan Kennedy speaks with Dr. Michael Pyevich, ORA Orthopedics, about scoliosis. Dr. Pyevich is a pediatric orthopedist and specializes in treating scoliosis, a multi-planer deformity of the spine of both children and adults.
“There are literally thousands of types of scoliosis,” explains Dr. Pyevich, noting that the most common type, idiopathic scoliosis, is typically found in 10-14 year-olds. General practice doctors usually scan for it when they conduct annual school physicals of younger patients.
Dan and Dr. Pyevich discuss what doctors look for in order to determine someone has the deformity and what treatment options are available.
Dr. Pyevich lays out the three most common courses of action: watch the patient and follow the development of their scoliosis to make sure it does not become too severe; fit the patient with a brace he or she can wear to halt the progression of the ailment; or schedule the patient for surgery.
Bracing a patient only works while the patient’s bones are growing. Boys and girls whose spines have stopped growing have to consider the other options to either monitor the development of their scoliosis or to try and surgically correct it.
You can learn more about scoliosis and the options to treat it by listening to the “Doc Talk” podcast here:
