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GD has scoliosis

(33 Posts)
aonk Sat 02-May-26 22:50:38

My GD who I’ll call R has just been diagnosed with adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. She is in year 7 and will be 13 in September. She told DD that her hip felt strange and DD noticed that something wasn’t right. She had seen a consultant and had an X-ray which showed a curvature of 40 degrees. She’s been measured for a brace and is waiting for it to be made. R is a sweet and very intelligent girl and she’s now very upset and anxious. DD doesn’t want to see anyone. I’ve only had one very brief phone call in 3 weeks. I know very little about this condition and wonder if anyone out there might have had experience of it. I know surgery has been mentioned as a possibility in the future and that she will have another X-ray in 6 months to see if the brace has made any difference. R is very unhappy about having to wear it.

twaddle Sat 02-May-26 22:55:49

Maybe not the role model you want, but Princess Eugenie had scoliosis. She deliberately wore a wedding dress which showed off her scar from an op when she was 12.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45835711

PaperMonster2 Sat 02-May-26 23:12:44

I have it. When it was discovered, I was too old for a brace. I’m ever so slightly out of alignment. This has caused a variety of msk issues and pains over the years. I hope that the brace helps your GD.

MissAdventure Sat 02-May-26 23:13:08

My exes Nan wore a brace as a teen, and she was fantastically upright forever more.
I met her when she was well into her 90s, and she was tall, reed slim, and very, very straight backed.
It must be horrible for a young woman like your g daughter, though.

I'm sure she'll get accustomed to it, as will her friends.

Sarnia Sat 02-May-26 23:37:58

twaddle

Maybe not the role model you want, but Princess Eugenie had scoliosis. She deliberately wore a wedding dress which showed off her scar from an op when she was 12.

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-45835711

Why should Princess Eugenie not possibly be the role model the OP might want? aonk is asking for some information on what is clearly a worrying health issue for her GD and the family.
Surely you have not made that remark because of who Princess Eugenie's father is?

twaddle Sat 02-May-26 23:59:15

I was actually thinking Princess Eugenie's not an "ordinary" citizen and probably didn't have to go through NHS queues, etc.

TheSunRisesInTheEast Sun 03-May-26 02:14:16

Aonk, I'm sorry your granddaughter is having to deal with this, I can understand how upsetting it is for your daughter, it isn't easy when our children are suffering. The brace may help at first, but it's probably inevitable that an operation will be needed to rectify the problem, it's marvellous what they can do now and your granddaughter will be thankful for the surgery in the future. It's a shock for you all, but you can all support one another 💐.

David49 Sun 03-May-26 09:29:32

One of my GDs is quite tall had a rod fitted to straighten it at 13, it corrected the problem and I havnt heard of any ill effects since.
However she doesn't do sports, it's a risky operation, pain and limited movement may result, now at 25 how that is affecting her social life I'm not sure

Grammaretto Sun 03-May-26 09:45:01

It's tough and must have been a shock.

My DDiL has a scoliosis. It must have been noticed when she was much younger than your GD . She had a big operation aged 9, a metal rod was inserted and she wore a brace for several months.

She must have been in pain at times and sees a physio for exercises.

She has given birth to 2 healthy girls and has a demanding job and ofcourse everyone forgets what she's gone through.

All the best to your DGD.

BlueBelle Sun 03-May-26 09:51:54

Please can I add some hope
My close friends grandson was diagnosed as a late teen ( I have no idea how he parents didn’t see it before but …) he was very thin and with a defininate curve to one side so when it was seen by the GP he was late for a brace but he had surgery just like Princess Beatrice had He had to have a few weeks recovering but is now a full on straight backed guy and gained all his confidence and ‘go’ back
Please don’t despair

Gingster Sun 03-May-26 09:53:13

My good friends daughter had this at age 14.
She actually had surgery with rods put in her back and then a brace to wear for a while afterwards.
She is now 50 yrs old and you wouldn’t know . She’s lovely and upright with no problems that Ive heard of and I know my friend would have told me.

Good luck 🙏

Erica23 Sun 03-May-26 09:54:55

Just wanted to say that diagnosis sounds tough at her age, I have a DGD at a similar age so can imagine the shock and heartache for you all.
You’d do anything to take the pain away for them. I’m sure once she starts her treatment she’ll feel better about it all. Wishing her all the very best.

silverlining48 Sun 03-May-26 09:56:24

My dd was diagnosed at 15 with 38 degree curvature. It was a terrible shock. She wore a permanent brace for a while before being fitted with one she could remove for a shower etc. Always stressful when attending hospital in case she needed surgery but she was always just out of the range which required it.
She is nearly 50 now and has coped well over this time.
There was a scoliosis society which we joined which helped us a lot with the questions we had.
It may run in the family as my other daughter had a mild curve as does my gd.
It’s mostly girls who get this and it can be visible if you ask the child to bend over to touch their toes , stand behind and if the shoulder blades don’t match or are a bit wonky that can be a sign.

silverlining48 Sun 03-May-26 10:32:09

I had a quick google and Scoliosis Support and Research is in Latimer Road, London.

Astitchintime Sun 03-May-26 10:47:46

PM sent

aonk Sun 03-May-26 12:43:49

Thank you to all those who have replied. I realise we can’t “put the cart before the horse.” This is going to be a long drawn out process. We are all shocked and must learn to get used to what we can’t change.

butterandjam Sun 03-May-26 13:47:18

Many of her friends will also be wearing braces.... on their teeth, in full public view.

Ladyleftfieldlover Sun 03-May-26 14:11:36

My daughter who is 45 this month was diagnosed with scoliosis at 14. It appeared very suddenly just before Christmas. We would have noticed while swimming on holiday. We saw the GP in January who gave a very detailed explanation, possibly because he had a student with him. We went down the private route as OH had BUPA with his job. So we saw a Consultant in Oxford who said she needed an operation to insert rods in her back. We chose a date in the Easter holidays so she didn’t have to miss any school. All went well. She had to wear a plaster cast for 3 months. I think these days the cast is removable. Annoyingly a couple of years later one of the screws came loose so she had the rods removed. Every five years she attends the National Orthopaedic Centre in London to see how things are going.

It is a big operation for a teenage girl. There is a large scar involved.

There is support. We were put in touch with a girl in the area who had the operation. She and her mum popped over for a chat.

I am sure all will go well. Just make sure you have all the information.

JaneJudge Sun 03-May-26 14:20:16

One of mine had scoliosis correction surgery in the past decade as the brace didn't really work. Things have really moved on. They really do know what they are doing ad how to minimise risk.

There was apparently an operation shown on BBC or Channel 4 I believe.

We were all petrified but they give you time to come to terms with it all before surgery (if surgery is needed) and the outcomes are very positive smile It will all be very raw at the moment for them

saltnshake Sun 03-May-26 14:37:36

Twaddle you are letting your bias show in your remark. Just because she is a princess does not mean she was less deserving of treatment or had superior treatment. Princess Eugenie was treated at The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Stanmore. She was treated by NHS surgeon and nurses. She now raises money to support the improvement of the hospital. I have seen photographs of the hospital at the time of treatment, certainly not luxurious more like old concrete blockhouses. Aonk, I wish your granddaughter well in her treatment and wish her a long and healthy life.

Susan56 Sun 03-May-26 14:45:15

A friend of my daughter had the surgery to correct this when she was about 14.The surgery was very successful.
A lady we chat to at the school gates has a little girl of seven who is having surgery in July.
It has probably come as a shock to your daughter and granddaughter and they just need time to come to terms with it.
I wish you all well and a successful outcome for your granddaughter 🙏🏻💐

MissAdventure Sun 03-May-26 16:48:02

We all have back issues in my family.
My older grandson has extra vertebrae!
My mum was appallingly bent over, and I'm heading the same way.
Standing up straight is getting to be just too painful.

I wish we'd had some sort of intervention (apart from my mum yelling "Will you stand up straight!!)

twaddle Sun 03-May-26 17:01:15

saltnshake

Twaddle you are letting your bias show in your remark. Just because she is a princess does not mean she was less deserving of treatment or had superior treatment. Princess Eugenie was treated at The Royal National Orthopaedic Hospital Stanmore. She was treated by NHS surgeon and nurses. She now raises money to support the improvement of the hospital. I have seen photographs of the hospital at the time of treatment, certainly not luxurious more like old concrete blockhouses. Aonk, I wish your granddaughter well in her treatment and wish her a long and healthy life.

What on earth do you mean? I wasn't suggesting for one moment that Princess Eugenie is less deserving.

It's good to hear that she was treated by NHS surgeons and nurses. I guess I'm a bit surprised, but I respect her parents for making that choice and I respect her for raising money for the hospital. The reason I even knew about any of it was because I remembered reading that she deliberately wore a wedding dress which showed her scar.

I mentioned it in an attempt to destigmatise the condition (obviously failed in somebody's eyes).

So how about winding your neck in a bit? I don't have any particularly strong feelings about the monarchy nor any of the members of the royal family. I am certainly not one of the people who piles in to criticise them, whatever they do.

JaneJudge Sun 03-May-26 17:37:17

It’s a massively expensive operation. I think the titanium alone costs an absolute fortune.

The scars are also amazing when you imagine what they actually do! Just a perfectly straight, very thin line

Quercus Sun 03-May-26 17:50:02

Deenie by Judy Blume is a story about a teenage girl diagnosed with scoliosis who has to wear a brace. It may be of interest to you, DD or GD although there are probably others written more recently.