Levoconvex Lumbar Scoliosis: Causes, Symptoms, & Treatment

In addition to scoliosis ranging widely in severity, there are also different types of scoliosis, determined by causation; there are also different types of scoliotic curves, and when a diagnosis is given, conditions are further classified based on specific patient/condition variables. Continue reading to learn about the different condition/curvature types.

In typical scoliosis cases, the unnatural spinal curvature bends to the right, away from the heart, but in atypical cases, the unnatural curvature of the spine curves to the left, towards the heart; this is the case with levoconvex scoliosis, and levoconvex lumbar scoliosis affects the lumbar spine.

Before getting to the specifics of levoconvex lumbar scoliosis, let's explore some basic spinal anatomy for a better understanding of how the condition affects the spine.

Healthy Spinal Anatomy

In a healthy spine, the vertebrae are stacked on top of one another in a straight and neutral alignment.

If viewed from the front and/or back, the spine appears straight, but if viewed from the sides, it will take on a soft 'S' shape, and this is due to the spine's natural and healthy curves; if the spine loses one or more of those healthy curves, its natural function and biomechanics are disrupted.

The spine's healthy curves make it more flexible, better able to absorb/distribute mechanical stress incurred during movement, and stronger, like a coiled spring.

There are three main spinal sections, and each has its own curvature type: cervical (neck), thoracic spine (middle/upper back), and lumbar spine (lower back).

When it comes to scoliosis, we're talking about an unnatural sideways spinal curvature, with rotation, and a minimum Cobb angle measurement of 10 degrees.

Part of the diagnostic process involves comprehensively assessing conditions based on specific variables: patient age, curvature location, condition severity, and type (cause).

In addition, the curvature type is important and will guide the design of effective and customized treatment plans, and this is where the direction in which the unnatural spinal curve bends is important.

What is Levoconvex Lumbar Scoliosis?

To break down the term levoconvex lumbar scoliosis, we're talking about scoliosis that has developed in the lumbar spine.

While scoliosis can develop in any section of the spine, the thoracic spine is the most common, which makes sense as it's the largest spinal section, and when it comes to the lumbar region, this section has to support the weight of the spinal sections above, the entire trunk, and feels the effects of bending/lifting/twisting motions, making it vulnerable to a number of issues/spinal conditions.

Now, in typical scoliosis cases, the unnatural spinal curvature will bend to the right, away from the heart, but in atypical cases, it will bend to the left, towards the heart, so when I see that, it's a red flag that there is an underlying pathology.

Levo means left, so levoscoliosis refers to a scoliotic curve that bends to the left.

Every spinal curvature has a convex and concave side; convex refers to the outside of the curve, while concave refers to the inside.

So with putting the terms levo and convex together, we know that the scoliotic curve bends to the left from its outer edge, likely forming a hard 'C' shape.

Levoconvex Scoliosis Causes

As mentioned, cases of scoliosis are considered atypical if the curve bends to the left, and this leads us into causation: another key classification point.

The most prevalent form of scoliosis is adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS), diagnosed between the ages of 10 and 18, and the idiopathic classification means we don't fully understand why it developed

Approximately 80 percent of diagnosed scoliosis cases are idiopathic, and the remaining types have known causes that are considered atypical: neuromuscular scoliosis, congenital scoliosis, degenerative scoliosis, and traumatic scoliosis.

When curves bend to the left, it's caused by one of the following atypical condition types.

Neuromuscular Scoliosis

Neuromuscular scoliosis affects the connection between the brain and connective tissues and/or muscles that support the spine; after all, it's not just the spine that's in charge of maintaining its healthy curves and alignment, but also its surrounding muscles, and weak muscles can't provide that support.

Neuromuscular scoliosis is caused by the presence of a larger neuromuscular condition such as cerebral palsy, muscular dystrophy, and spina bifida, to name a few.

Treatment for neuromuscular scoliosis has to be driven by the underlying neuromuscular condition, as that's the cause of the scoliosis.

Congenital Scoliosis

Congenital scoliosis develops in utero due to a bone malformation within the spine itself, and this can involve a misshapen vertebrae being more triangular, than rectangular in shape, making it difficult for the vertebrae to stay aligned.

In addition, vertebrae can also fail to separate into distinct vertebral bodies, forming instead into one solid bone, and causing the development of an abnormal sideways curvature of the spine that's present at birth.

Treatment for congenital scoliosis has to be modified because of the unique challenges associated with treating patients of such a young age.

Degenerative Scoliosis

Degenerative scoliosis develops due to nature age-related spinal degeneration, and it's more common in women, due to hormone/bone density changes related to menopause.

Degenerative scoliosis is the second most common type of adult scoliosis, after idiopathic scoliosis, and most often, it's the spine's intervertebral discs that are the first spinal structures to show the effects of deterioration.

The integrity of the vertebral column depends on the health of the discs that sit between adjacent vertebrae; they provide cushioning to avoid friction during movement, structure as adjacent vertebrae attach to the disc in between, and act as the spine's shock absorbers.

If a disc deteriorates, it can become desiccated, lose height and change shape, and this impacts the integrity of the spine and its ability to maintain its natural curves and alignment.

Traumatic Scoliosis

As the name suggests, traumatic scoliosis is caused by a significant trauma sustained by the spine, such as vertebral compression fractures, causing a spine deformity.

In addition, the presence of tumors pressing on the spine can also force it out of alignment and cause the development of traumatic scoliosis.

Treatment for traumatic scoliosis has to address the injury on a structural level.

When it comes to any type of scoliosis, the most important decision for patients to make is how to treat it because different treatment approaches offer different potential outcomes.

Lumbar Levoscoliosis Treatment Options

Now that we've covered the different types of scoliosis, let's address how levoscoliosis can be treated, by a scoliosis specialist, for the best potential results.

As mentioned, in cases where scoliosis is caused by the presence of a larger medical condition/disease, as is the case in neuromuscular scoliosis, the underlying pathology has to be the focus of treatment: spina bifida, muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, and more.

When it comes to congenital scoliosis, we're talking about modifying treatment plans to suit younger patients, and this will include focused monitoring for progression, and responding as needed with physical therapy and/or bracing, when appropriate.

When an abnormal curve develops due to deterioration, degenerative scoliosis can be treated by addressing its underlying cause; if it's disc deterioration, as it commonly is, a combination of chiropractic care and physical therapy can help work towards repositioning the most-tilted vertebrae back into alignment with the rest of the spine, taking pressure off affected discs to preserve their function, and increasing core strength so the spine is better supported by its surrounding muscles.

For cases of traumatic scoliosis, treatment needs would be case-specific, depending on the injury sustained by the spine, and that would have to be the focus of treatment, as the underlying cause of the scoliosis.

Conclusion

It can be challenging to process a scoliosis diagnosis, but regardless of the type of scoliosis, or severity, the best time to start treatment is always now, and this is because, as a progressive condition, its nature is to worsen over time.

So a diagnosis of levoconvex lumbar scoliosis would mean an abnormal lateral curvature of the spine has developed, and the curve's outer edge would bend to the left, in the lumbar spine.

As a leftward curve, levoscoliosis is less common than typical cases of scoliosis where curves bend to the right.

When a scoliotic curve bends to the left, there is an underlying pathology to determine, and in cases of neuromuscular scoliosis, for example, the scoliosis development is considered a secondary complication of a larger neuromuscular condition.

While each case is unique, some common symptoms of levoconvex scoliosis can include uneven shoulders, a rib cage arch, uneven hips, uneven shoulder height, muscle spasms, and pain, both localized back pain and radicular pain due to nerve roots being compressed.

Here at the Scoliosis Reduction Center, I have experience diagnosing and treating all types, and severity levels, of scoliosis, including levoconvex lumbar scoliosis.

My approach is conservative and chiropractic-centered and combines condition-specific chiropractic care, in-office therapy, corrective bracing, and custom-prescribed home exercises that can help realign the spine, increase core strength, prevent progression, and help patients avoid the need for invasive procedures like spinal fusion.