erin
hello my name is erin. i am a sixteen year old girl who is headed into surgery in 4 days for scoliosis. i also swim competativily. my doctor has informed me depending on how far down the back the curve is, the more they have to fuse which in turn means that how much motion you loose depends on how bad your curve is. one piece of information that helps access how much motion you will loose is that 80% of the motion in your back is controled by the lowest 4 to 5 vertebrae in your back. i have not yet had the surgery but i have seen the results and your back will look less noticable and more normal after sugery, however there will be large scars that may or may not heal completily with time. My doctor has also assured me that I will be able to do flipturns after the surgery, however i will not be able to return fully to competative swimming for an estimated length of time as one year.