← Back Aibhlinn C. | Early Onset Scoliosis

Aibhlinn came to us as an 18 month old. Mom had recently noticed a difference on her back and they brought her in for an evaluation and first xray. She had curves of 44 and 47. She had an RVAD of 22 degrees. We recommended obtaining a spine MRI to evaluate for syrinx, chiari and tethered cord and started the discussions about casting and bracing. They decided to move forward with casting and her first cast was placed a month later. She had an MRI between the first and second cast which showed a tethered cord. This was subsequently released by a neurosurgeon. Her second casting was delayed for her to undergo the release of the tethered cord. She was then seen back in the office and her curve had increased to 62 degrees.

After removal of the 2nd cast, her curve decreased to 36 degrees. She had a total of 7 casts and then was transitioned to a brace for a summer casting holiday. Her curves were 31 and 45 a year later at the age of 2. She did 2 years of full time bracing and then transitioned to nighttime bracing at the age of 5. At the age of 7 her curves were 25 and 15 and after discussion, it was decided to take a brace holiday. She is now 10 and her curves are holding steady at 21 and 19. We will need to continue observation through the adolescent growth spurt. There is a possibility that she will need to go back into the brace if the curve progresses through that growth spurt but for now her curves are stable and she continues to be a very active 10 year old.