Scheuermann's Disease

I am 21 years old I was 17 when i was diagnosed with sheuermanns disease and last year i was diaonosed with scoliosis. it feels like it gets worse every year more and more back pain stomach i have a family now and i need to make more money i was wondering if doing hard labour like roofing would damage my back more??

I just found your posting and i hope that you still view it. My daughter is 12 and she has been diagnosed with SD 2 weeks ago. She has a 60 degree curviture and Dr. Is recommending brace. I'm having a very hard time finding information if brace works or not. Did the brace work for your daughters? What was their curvature and which brace did they recommend?

Hi! I'm 26 years old, and I was just diagnosed with Scheuermann's Disease. I first noticed that something was wrong with my back when I was 13 and in junior high school. All of my peers made fun of me, and life was pretty horrible. My parents and family always yelled at me to sit up straight, but I always thought I was sitting up straight. Being "hunched" over was sitting up straight to me. Then thy would come, and straighten my back, and it would feel uncomfortable and at times, it would even hurt. After I graduated high school, I would constantly tell myself every 10 minutes to "sit up straight." This only lasted for a few years, then the pain hit. I would have neck pains, lower back pains, and even mid back pains. I also noticed that I have a line that goes across my chest (underneath my breasts) that comes from me being hunched over all the time. All the times I went to the doctor, I never really got the help that I needed. Finally I went to an Ortho-Doctor and all I had to do was walk across the room, and bend over. He notices the disease that I had just that quick. My curve was at 85 degrees!! That same day my doctor came me two options and they were to either go through with surgery, or to go through physical therapy (AGAIN!!!). I thought about it for a few day, and realized that I had been in physical therapy all of my life, and it wasn't an option for me anymore. My surgery is set for January 10, 2012, and I am so excited to finally rid this hunch and pain!!! I will keep you guys posted:)

Hi I am a mother of a now 19 year old son.  we first started watching his back at about 13 as he had back pain,  His fathere has Scheuermann's Disease and I new it could run in family's.  My son gets pain for many reasons.  he has limited movement in the uper back and hates to bend over becouse it looks bad,  he like you has the emotional scars of being picked on or treated badly becouse he looked hunched back,  we are under a great doctor at the Wesly Hospital in Brinsbane Australia, He specialise in Spinal disorders and we are looking at surgery this year.  My son is at 75 to 77% and get pain if he tries to stand for to long.  holding down a job is not easy as the pain get so bad some days.  I would love him to do a bit more stretching as it helps.  I have a bulging disc and have to do them every morning and know that it makes a difference.  I feel for you all. I have been a single mother going through this with my son, its tough and I know I cant do much for the pain appart from a heat pack and linament and some pain killers.  My son suffers from some Asthma symptoms that are related and also has a reflux if he carries anything heavey and put pressure on his back. 

I would encourage you all to stretch out on your back with arms above your head as much as you can, it just helps with some of the pain the discs are taking,  also use a hot pack and a realy good linament.  but most of all find a Doctor that specalises in spinal conditions. there are lots of listing on the net for each country.  I am thankful we live in Australia as we have acsess to better boctors and can get cover to help with the costs. 

 

I hope each one of you can find what is best for you. the surgery is scary and the recovery is long and painful but it is something my son wants to do, He to wants to feel and look normal.  I trust God to get us through it, I hope and pray for each one of you that you find your way to the help and support you need. I have had back pain since I was 15 with scholiosis and I know that its no fun at all. 

 

You have all been very helpful with your post's and thank you for sharing.

 

I will post more once the surgery is done and my son has recovered. thanks 

 

My name is John and I have had Scheurmann's disease all my life. I am quite older than your daughter, 42, and let me tell you that If she is having trouble now, if not addressed, will only get worse. I have been through everything from physical therapy, haveing a brace, a tens unit, and over the past 3 years It is only gettimg worse. I am taking percription stomach medication, blod pressure meds, 30 mg morphine2x daily, vicodin hp 10mg 4x daily, flexeril 20mg 3x daily and much more. I am still in continous thoracic back pain all day every day. Because of the stress that this disease puts one ones body eventualy it will make breakthrough symptoms of every nature come thrugh. Now at the age of 42 my T8, T9, T10 aaand T11 vertebre's are completely calcified. One solid bone in which the doctor can not even administer epadural injections. I don't know what condition i will be in in the future, but back surgery is a given. Take this disease very seriously and if needed get a 3rd and 4th opinion on everything. Mostly, LISTEN to your daughter and her concerns with how she feels. Never take her pain for granted, it can and may very well become dibilatating. Because she is young, look into a back brace now before it may be to late. God Bless You and Your's.

i have been diagnosed with sheuermanns disease almost a year ago while i was a senior in high school. i found out that i had symptoms while i was younger and progressivly worsend till the point the pain got so bad i had to go to hospital. after going to 4 doctors one finaly diagnosed me. working with physical therapy has helped but i have lost my insurance after i turned 18 and grad so i have to continue while at home nopw. im sorry about your son, if he works with physical therapy it may help him in a great amount. my pt told me i had to strengthen my back in order to protect it from worsening. if worsens surgery has been known to help a really great bit. researching it on google may also help you alot, it has for me :) good luck to you and your son.

Hi, My name is KandiMarie.. Im 21 years old and was just diagnosed with Scheuermanns about a week ago... and they actually found it by accident while they were looking at my hip and si joint. You see about two months ago i started have a lot of pain in my upper thigh.... I went thru 6 doctors untill they figured out that i have Degenrtive arthritis, causing the cartilage in my hip, so the si joint is slipping in and out of place that is making my tendins contrack on my nerves... causing so much pain i couldnt function.. I missed almost a month of work cuz i couldnt walk right, i couldnt sleep, i couldnt even eat. .. . Well the last doc i seen wanted to make sure that was indeed what it was, and he did a xray..,. He had to consult with a specialist cuz he has never seen this till me.. Well of course he called me in and showed me my xrays and told me what i needed to do.. i am taking 2000mg of calcium a day.. along with a load of other meds for the issues in my hip.. Mind you i have NO insurance. He told me that i have to do weight baring excersize three times a week and a little bit of physical therapy.. But he said he was shocked that i have never had back issues.. Now my wedging is not that bad i cant remember the degree of it, but he said it wasnt to the point where i need surgery ... (yet), I also asked him if this is  why i am so short.. (everyone in my family is about 8 inches taller then me.. im barely 5 feet).. He told me it was and that this was the reason why i stopped growing when i was a freshman in highschool. ..So now i have 2 medical conditions that are going to cause me pain.and its very frustrating... also i am the only one that have had degenitive arthritis and  Scheuermanns.... Ok so the question is.. whats  going to happen when i get older.. he told me its a possibility that plates could colapse .. and it scares the hell out of me.. 

 

 I suffered with tremendous pain from Scheuermann's Disease.  Mine manifested itself in the lower thoracic region and lumbar region of the spine.  I wore a spinal brace in order to prevent  kyphosis of the spine (hunchback) from the time I was 11 yrs old for about 2+ years while I was going through a significant growth spurt. The brace was like a corset with steel stays in the back which I wore religiously night and day and which  likely prevented me from getting much in the way of spinal deformity. . After the growth spurt I was told that the condition would be relatively self limiting and that I should be fine. Well I had muscle spasms & blinding flashes of pain several times a day for over 10 years.  I took pain meds, did exercises, went to physical therapy and eventually was told that my pain was from stress and that it was all in my head. What a Crock ! Anyway, long story short I went to a chiropractor in <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />Japan (at age 22 yrs) and upon getting my first treatment (adjustment),  INSTANTLY 10 years of hell and suffering with excruciating PAIN was GONE.  The difference for me was like night and day.  I was so amazed by what had happened that I went back to school and became a chiropractor. A Pelvic & Sacral adjustment were the adjustments that were life changing for me but lumbar, thoracic, and cervical treatment were also utilized and part of the prescribed treatment. Also exercise of the back extensor muscles proved helpful for me.There are many different chiropractic techniques and some things seem to work well for some people and not as well for others.  If one chiropractor doesn’t seem to work then try some others.  I would look for someone who does "full spine" adjusting and looking for a chiropractic doctor who is a Palmer Graduate might be a good bet also. Pierce technique and Thompson technique seem to work well for me. (GooglePalmerCollege of Chiropractic - Call Alumni Development or the main switchboard for a referral to a "full Spine" doctor using Pierce or Thompson techniques in your area.  Also note that the degree of deformity that you have may have bearing as to how well you will respond to chiropractic care and may have bearing on how often you will need to be adjusted. Physical therapy and  orthopedic evaluation would also be advised. Good luck!<?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" />

At the age of about 10 I developed chronic back pain.  My amazing mother didn't write it off to 'growing pains' and took me to a doctor for advice.  The GP DID write it off to 'growing pains', but mom sought a second opinion.   

Hi there, I myself suffer from this Disease. I was diagnosed 10 months ago and I am 27 years old. I have created a Facebook Page for people to join. Please come and join my page, I post information, personal experiences etc and ask other people with this condition to post their experience and advise, opinons. Please Join

http://www.facebook.com/#!/ScheuermansDiseaseHelp

This is the most foolish and insensitive post I've seen in quite some time. Obviously, you have no children. Otherwise, you'd realize how difficult it is to accept that your child will, for the rest of his life, go through the pain of Scheuermann's. If you had children, you'd have some sympathy and compassion for lisareik. You, sir, have no idea what you're talking about. Does diagnosis by a message therapist really count? There is a very good possibility that you do not have Scheuermann's. If you truly had the disease, you'd have sympathy for a parent whose child is diagnosed with this disease. Additionally, if pain is in a person's mind, then how can you say that you found relief for pain in better posture and in exercise? Seems like the most illogical argument a person could make. My guess is that you study psychology hoping that you will find a cure for your own psychological shortcomings.

Hello. I am a 25 year old male who just got diagnosed as well.. My thoracic kyphosis is at 63 degrees. I can cope with daily life but I do have lots of discomfort and tiredness. I do not want to get spinal fusion, don't think I need it besides it's fairly risky. I am waiting for alternatives, what about you, will you get surgery? Best of luck with this shitty condition of ours!

Hello. First of all I just want to wish everyone the best of luck with your backs, this disease is a real bummer! I know cause I have it too, I'm 25 now, it was recently confirmed that I do have Scheuermann's, my curve is 63 degrees. I know many of you have it way worse and I feel your pain, at least I can sort of relate. I do have some discomfort but it's fairly "mild" compared to more severe cases so I won't whine about it. I have stopped growing so only time will tell if my curve will get any worse. I'm sure we could all agree that we just want to fix our spines and carry on. The only way to correct our curves is to get surgery. Now I don't want to get spinal fusion, my case is not severe enough and there are many risks involved. Long story short does anybody here know of a new technology that's being/been developed to treat thoracic kyphosis? Possible a minimally invasive technique? I will have to be patient until some genius has come up with something new :) I hope that day comes soon! Again best of luck to all of you, stay positive!

Hi everybody, I'm so glad that other people are struggling through the same things as me. Sometimes I feel my back is ruining my life and feel like nobody understands the pain Im in. Im 16 years old and have been struggling with a disk bulge (T12 L1) and Scheuermanns for 6 months. The symptoms gradually set in as I was preparing for my sophomore year of football. I was very active in weightlifting and training which put a lot of stress on my discs to the point of pain where I received an MRI and was informed I had a rare case of Scheurmanns disease in my upper thoracic lower lumbar spine, along with my bulging disc. This was a great dissappointment to me after all of the training i put in so i missed my sophomore year of football:'( One of the hardest choices of my life. I visited multiple physical therapists who showed me various exercises and stretches to strengthen my back. I do them EVERY day and am working my *** off to strengthen my core and multifidus (lower back) muscles. I have seen about a 40% improvement in the last 6 months considering i can now do a superman with little pain, used to HURT SOOOOO BAD. I can also run now and perform high impact exercises again, THANK GOD! Im sorry for rambling... i do that a lot... anyways the reason I'm on this website is because Im feeling super depressed today... I just visited a back specialist today because i am no longer seeing the improvements i first achieved through therapy. He was a very intelligent guy and told me exactly what I didn't want to hear about my back. He viewed my MRI and told me that my progress has plateaued due to the fact that I just cant enlarge my discs in my back no matter how hard I try. I have two disc spaces with very little cushioning and ones bulging against my spinal cord which is whats causing my pain. The good news is that my scheurmanns isnt in the usual upper back area where your spinal cord is more defenseless (softer)  my spinal cord is actually hard enough not to cause me shooting pains in my legs and I still have full leg strength. Because of this, Im actually cleared for football and hockey, however the pain is still there... He gave me two options.. SURGERY and have no pain, however can never play sports again... OR NO SURGERY but have chronic back pain for the rest of my life but can still play sports...:-( Didnt even have to think about it.. i told him option 2 because i cant imagine a lifestyle without sports/ lifting etc.... its part of my life! And if pain is there.. than so be it! I have made the best of my situation and am happy for the life Im blessed with. SORRY for the long story but it feels good to finally get that off my chest.. cant really explain my situation to anybody cas all my friends r stupid... anyways i would like to offer some advice from my experience to help whoever feels they need it. Visit a physical therapist, do the exercises they recommend, strengthen your core and back, FOCUS ON GOOD POSTURE WHEREVER U ARE!!! Stretch continually   throughout day (i stretch before and after school to prevent and get rid of stiffness) , talk to a chiropractor, low impact exercise like swimming cycling w/good posture etc....heating pad or hot tub, inversion table for traction, no squats or lifting that puts uneeded stress on the discs, AND MOST IMPORTANTLY MAKE THE BEST OF YOUR SITUATION!!! MY MOTTO.... YOU ARE ALL IN MY PRAYERS AND WISH YOU THE BEST!

hi, I'm 22 years old and was diagnosed with scheuermanns disease when I was 12. i struggled to get out of chairs at school and since then I have been fighting for something to be done I've tried physio therapy and a chiropractor but nothing is working. I struggle to get out of bed most days and I'm in excruciating pain all the time I cannot get comfortable and haven't slept properly for years. I've seen so many drs even privately and all have said that its not 'bad enough' for surgery and offer me an epidural. everyday I cry I'm I that much pain and lock myself away as it upsets my mum seeing me in pain, blaming herself. I feel like there isn't enough support out there for us. I want to be a normal 22 year old. I'm going to have to quit my job soon and getting about is becoming impossible. I cant bare the thought of not being able to do stuff and feel that without work ill go crazy! let alone not ever being able to afford my own house or have my own family.