Kyphosis (patient information)
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What is kyphosis?
How do I know if I have kyphosis and what are the symptoms of kyphosis?
Patients with kyphosis may experience the following symptoms. With the disease progresses, patients may show symptoms of cardiac and pulmonary problems.
- Appearance of hunchback
- Fatigue
- Back pain
- Tenderness and stiffness in the back
- Shortness of breath
- Chest pain
Who is at risk for kyphosis?
- Osteoporosis
- Disk degeneration such as arthritis
- Ankylosing spondylitis
- Connective tissue disorders such as Marfan syndrome
- Muscular dystrophy
- Neurofibromatosis
- Paget's disease
- Polio
- Spina tuberculosis
- Spina tumors
- Spina bifida
- Scoliosis
- Trauma
- Poor posture of teen-agers
How to know you have kyphosis?
The goal of examination is to reveal the underlying cause of kyphosis.
- Medical history
- Physical examination
- Appearance: The doctor will look at your back and find the abnormalities.
- Palpation: The doctor touches your spine and feel whether there is any tenderness or stiffness in the back.
- Adam's forward bending test: The goal of the test is to show abnormal appearance. During the procedure, the examiner stands behind the patient and ask him/her to bent forward. Patients with kyphosis may appear a rounded curve or a more angular curve.
- Spine x-ray or MRI: These images may not only show the abnormalities of the spine, but also help identify the underlying causes of kyphosis by producing very detailed pictures.
When to seek urgent medical care?
Treatment options
Diseases with similar symptoms
Where to find medical care for kyphosis?
Directions to Hospitals Treating kyphosis
Prevention of kyphosis
What to expect (Outlook/Prognosis)?
Copyleft Sources
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001240.htm
http://www.medicinenet.com/kyphosis/article.htm
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/kyphosis/DS00681