As an asymmetrical spinal condition, scoliosis exposes the spine and its surroundings to uneven forces that can disrupt the body’s overall symmetry. The thoracic spine acts as an attachment point for the rib cage to anchor and support the upper body, so changes to the spine’s position can also affect the alignment of the attached rib cage.
Rib flare is a common effect of thoracic scoliosis that develops in the upper/middle back. The 3-dimensional nature of scoliosis causes the thoracic spine to curve unnaturally and rotate, exposing the attached rib cage to uneven forces and disrupting its alignment.
Scoliosis can cause widespread effects throughout the body, particularly when severe and/or if left untreated.
Primary Scoliosis Effects
Scoliosis affects all ages, ranges widely in severity, and has a number of effects, including potential complications if left untreated.
Scoliosis causes the spine to curve unnaturally to the side and rotate, and a misaligned spine can affect spinal health, and overall health, in a number of ways.
Scoliosis is also progressive, so its effects are likely to become more overt and disruptive over time.
In children, the earliest telltale signs of scoliosis are postural asymmetries such as uneven shoulders, hips, and a rib flare.
Adults also experience postural changes, but the main effect is pain involving the back, supportive structures, muscles, and nerves.
Growth is a primary trigger for progression, so cases of childhood scoliosis are more at risk for rapid progression than adults who are no longer growing.
The effects of scoliosis can increase quickly during periods of rapid growth, including postural changes.
Scoliosis can develop in any of the main spinal sections, but is most common in the thoracic spine (middle/upper back), and as the thoracic spine is the only section attached to the rib cage, it’s the most likely to cause flared ribs.
Thoracic Scoliosis and Rib Flare
While the spinal sections work together to preserve spinal strength and function, each section has unique roles to play in overall spinal biomechanics.
The thoracic spine is the largest spinal section and acts as an anchor point for the rib cage, forming the thoracic cage to protect important organs within, like the heart and lungs, and a number of muscles also attach to the thoracic spine (back and shoulder muscles).
The vertebrae of the thoracic spine and rib cage work together to facilitate respiratory function, and although the thoracic spine is the most rigid spinal section, it facilitates rotation, and to a lesser extent, flexion and extension.
The thoracic spine has to support the weight of the upper body and its straight and neutral position facilitates the upper body’s upright and healthy posture.
If an unnatural spinal curve with rotation develops in the thoracic spine, any of the aforementioned functions can be disrupted.
As the thoracic vertebrae are attached to the rib cage, a rib flare can develop as rotating vertebrae pull on the ribs and cause one side of the rib cage to protrude excessively while the opposite side of the rib cage becomes flatter.
An uneven rib cage can further disrupt posture through the torso’s misalignment, including disruptions to shoulder and pelvic alignment.
A rib flare will typically become more pronounced as progression causes the spine’s unnatural curve and rotation to increase; through early detection and intervention, many increasing effects may be preventable.
While there are no treatment guarantees, diagnosing and treating scoliosis early in its progressive line is associated with positive outcomes.
Rib Flare and Treatment
When it comes to correcting a rib flare, the underlying cause of the postural change has to be addressed: the scoliosis.
As it’s the spine’s structural misalignment and rotation that disrupts the alignment of the attached rib cage, the spine’s position and health needs to be improved.
While a treatment outcome can never be guaranteed, many cases of scoliosis are responsive to a proactive conservative treatment plan, particularly with early diagnosis and customized treatment.
Here at the Scoliosis Reduction Center®, patients benefit from an individualized approach that combines scoliosis-specific chiropractic care with physical therapy and corrective bracing; each treatment plan is unique and different treatment disciplines are apportioned accordingly.
Because the Center’s treatment plans are customized, they can be adjusted throughout based on how a patient is responding to treatment and/or growth.
Nonsurgical Treatment Options
Scoliosis-specific chiropractic care can involve a number of techniques and manual adjustments that target the curve’s most unnaturally-tilted and rotating vertebrae to improve the position of the spine.
A spine that’s aligned is balanced and stable, and reducing the size and severity of the scoliosis means restoring as much of the spine’s healthy curves as possible.
Reducing the size of a scoliosis improves the spine’s balance and stability, and scoliosis-specific physical therapy and rehabilitative exercise works towards improving core strength for more spinal support and stability.
A common effect of scoliosis is muscular imbalance, and scoliosis-specific physical therapy and rehabilitative exercise can also target the spine’s surrounding muscle balance to further counteract the condition’s uneven forces.
Corrective bracing can help facilitate corrective results by holding the spine in an over-corrective position and reinforcing the brain-body connection between spinal alignment and upright posture.
So as the scoliosis is reduced, so too are the condition’s uneven forces, and its effects are also improved and/or reversed, including asymmetries in the shoulders, hips, and rib cage.
The position of the rib cage is important for healthy movement patterns, respiratory/cardiac function, core stability, and healthy posture.
A misaligned rib cage involves the lower ribs protruding forward and can cause back and chest pain and stiff muscles in the back, chest, and around the ribs.
In cases of rotoscoliosis that involve a severe degree of rotation, rib flare can be severe and painful, and in order to achieve sustainable long-term pain management, proactive treatment is needed.
Conclusion
As a progressive spinal condition, scoliosis that’s not treated proactively, or left untreated, is likely to get worse over time, and as progression makes scoliosis more challenging to treat, there are a number of benefits associated with early detection proactive treatment.
Mild cases are unlikely to stay mild without the help of a customized treatment plan.
A rib flare is a symptom of scoliosis, and postural changes are the main effects of childhood scoliosis, while pain is the most common symptom of adult scoliosis.
Scoliosis can develop in any of the spine’s main sections, but most commonly affects the largest spinal section and the only section attached to the rib cage: the thoracic spine.
All types of scoliosis include a rotational component, but thoracic scoliosis, because the thoracic spine anchors the rib cage, is closely associated with a higher angle of trunk rotation and related rib flare.
Also known as a rib arch or rib hump, a rib flare can further impact the position of the pelvis, neck, and shoulders, and while not all rib flares are painful, back, shoulder, and chest pain can develop due to structural changes and/or muscle strain.
The best treatment for rib flare is a proactive and customized treatment plan that impacts the scoliosis on every level: improving the position and alignment of the spine, the spine’s surrounding muscle balance and strength, and supporting healthy movement patterns and good posture.
If healthy rib positioning is disrupted, further assessment is warranted as postural asymmetry is the earliest sign of childhood scoliosis, and early detection and intervention can shape successful treatment outcomes.
