Progressive Adolescent Idiopathic Cervical Kyphosis Secondary to Constant Postural Neck Flexion Reading Habit with a 10‐year Follow‐up: Case Report and Literature Review

Background Although it has been established that adolescent idiopathic cervical kyphosis (AICK) has no known cause, there are associated risk factors. However, the underlying causes remain puzzling. This case report presents severe AICK linked to chronic neck flexion postural habit, treated with com...

Full description

Saved in:

Bibliographic Details
Published in:	Orthopaedic surgery 2022-07, Vol.14 (7), p.1527-1532
Main Authors:	Wang, Lianlei, Ibrahim, Yakubu, Tian, Yonghao, Yuan, Suomao, Liu, Xinyu
Format:	Article
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Acupuncture Adolescent idiopathic kyphosis Case Report Case Reports Habits Kyphosis Medical imaging Neck flexion reading habits Neck pain Posture Progressive cervical kyphosis Radiology Range of motion Reading Spinal cord Statistics Surgery
Online Access:	Get full text
Tags:	Add Tag No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!

Description
Summary:	Background Although it has been established that adolescent idiopathic cervical kyphosis (AICK) has no known cause, there are associated risk factors. However, the underlying causes remain puzzling. This case report presents severe AICK linked to chronic neck flexion postural habit, treated with combined anterior and posterior correction surgery and review of the literature. Case presentation A 16‐year‐old male with no history of trauma, surgery, or family history of spinal deformity complained of intolerable neck pain and rigidity. He developed an incessant reading of comic books at a very young age, and he preferred placing the book on the floor with his head flexed between his thighs. Acupuncture and massage therapy failed to relief symptoms. He had no neurological symptoms on examination and X‐ray showed Cobb angle of 70.5°. MRI and CT scans showed no spinal cord compression or osteophyte formation. A combined anterior and posterior correction surgery was performed after a week of skull traction. The deformity was corrected, neck pain disappeared, and neck rotatory function maintained after posterior implant removal. The maximum follow‐up was 10 years. Conclusions The potential underlying risk factor observed in this case is unusual. Chronic neck flexion postural habit is a potential risk factor of severe AICK in some individuals. The current case reports an unusual predisposing factor of adolescent idiopathic cervical kyphosis (AICK) of a 16‐year‐old with no history of trauma, surgery, or family history of spinal deformity developed a severe cervical kyphosis. In some individuals, chronic neck flexion postural habit without any comorbidities may be a potential underlying cause of AICK. A detailed history taking is crucial to rule out any likely underlying cause.
ISSN:	1757-7853 1757-7861