Last Saturday, I participated in an online meeting organized by the Brazilian Association of Scoliosis Treatment (ABTE), aimed at scoliosis patients and their parents. I liked the name of the event, "Treating Scoliosis for Parents and Kids," which already says exactly what it's about.
Right at the beginning, I teared up with a mother's testimony, who opened the meeting by talking about how she and her daughter faced the diagnosis of scoliosis together and how the journey has been up to this point. Another girl with a curved spine, right, folks? In this same panel, I had the honor of being mentioned out loud by Thayna Giovana, a beautiful girl with congenital scoliosis, who thanked me for helping her with my first book when she needed it the most. She saw that I was online and paid this tribute to me. The coolest part is that she also wrote two books about her experience with scoliosis: "To keep on the right side of the chest" and "Life with a few extra screws" (both only in Portuguese editions).
The event featured excellent national and international lectures, including simultaneous translation, by doctors, psychologists, and physiotherapists. Among the names were Dr. Maria Cândida Luzo, Dr. Olavo Letaif, Dr. Alex Araujo, and Dr. Patricia Baracat. With topics like "The challenge of incorporating conservative scoliosis treatment into the routine of adolescents," "Seeing beyond the Cobb angle in scoliosis," and "Risks and benefits of neuromuscular scoliosis treatment," the meeting brought a lot of interesting information and exchanges among participants, who could ask their questions to the speakers at the end of each lecture.
I noticed that there was much discussion about the importance of not looking only at the Cobb angle in scoliosis treatment. This is just one of the indicators but cannot be the main one. Various clinical factors need to be evaluated throughout the treatment, and we should not become obsessed with the degree of the curve. Another heavily debated topic was the use of the brace and how much it helps in conservative scoliosis treatment. Still, of course, each case needs to be looked at very carefully because there is no ideal brace, only what's best for each patient.
After all, what makes a bad brace?
- Braces should not be uncomfortable or cause skin injuries due to pressure or friction;
- They should not cause deformations in the ribcage;
- They should not compress the person inside it;
- They should maintain sagittal alignment;
- They should be aesthetically acceptable.
PS: this is a free translation of the slide above.
Crooked spine folks, this was another wonderful and important meeting to talk about this condition, which often leaves us pulling our hair out because of how intriguing it is. However, the more we study and understand it, the more knowledge we can pass on and help those in need!
So, did you like it? Leave your comments!
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