Bulge or deformity in the back: Patients are usually able to point to the site of their back pain, and a bulge may be visible due to muscle rotation or rib cage rotation.Stenosis can generate inflammation in nerves which, in turn, causes in leg pain and numbness or weakness when walking or standing for a long period of time. When there is nerve compression, this is called spinal stenosis. This results in fatigue and failure especially after activities on the convex side. In some cases, there is also muscular fatigue related pain due to muscles on the convex side working harder to maintain postural balance while the concave muscles are mechanically disadvantaged to function optimally. “Pain may be related to the curve itself or due to compression of the spinal nerves,” explains Oheneba Boachie-Adjei, MD, Chief Emeritus of the Scoliosis Service at HSS. Pain: Adults with scoliosis often experience pain, which leads them to seek medical care.Less often, people may experience fatigue, a loss of height, or a feeling of fullness when, in fact, the stomach is empty. The most common symptoms of scoliosis in adults is pain and, often, a visible bulge on the back at the site of this pain. What are the symptoms of scoliosis in adults? The curvature shown in the left image is the normal curve of the spine when it is viewed from the side (not scoliosis). thoracic spine (chest and upper back region)įigure 5: Diagram showing the sections of the healthy spine, with the neck (cervical) section at the top, followed below by the thoracic and lumbar sections, the sacrum and the coccyx (tailbone).Scoliosis can affect the spine in any of its three major sections: What part of the spine curves in people with scoliosis? However, adults may also be diagnosed with scoliosis, either when a curve that existed in their youth progresses, or as a de novo (newly diagnosed condition) that can result from degenerative changes in the spine or osteoporosis.įigures 1-4: Progression of adult scoliosis from age 14 (top left) to age 46 (lower right). Scoliosis most frequently occurs in children and teenagers. This different from the condition known as kyphosis, where the spine has an abnormal, forward-oriented curvature. Scoliosis is a lateral (or sideways) curvature of the spine in one or more places. What are the symptoms of scoliosis in adults?.What part of the spine curves in people with scoliosis?.