Scoliosis affects 2–3% of the United States population, which is equivalent to about 5 to 9 million cases. A scoliosis spinal column's curve of 10° or less affects 1.5% to 3% of individuals. The age of onset is usually between 10 years and 15 years (can occur at a younger age) in children and adolescents, making up to 85% of those diagnosed. This is seen to be due to rapid growth spurts occurring at puberty when spinal development is most relenting to genetic and environmental influences. Because female adolescents undergo growth spurts before postural musculoskeletal maturity, scoliosis is more prevalent among females. Although fewer cases are present today using Cobb angle analysis for diagnosis, scoliosis remains a prevailing condition, appearing in otherwise healthy children. Incidence of idiopathic scoliosis (IS) stops after puberty when skeletal maturity is reached, however, further curvature may proceed during late adulthood due to vertebral osteoporosis and weakened musculature.

The risk of serious complications from spinal fusion surgery for kyphosis is estimated to be 5%, similar to the risks of surgery for scoliosis. Possible complications include inflammation of the soft tissue or deep inflammatory processes, breathing impairments, bleeding, and nerve injuries. According to the latest evidence, the actual rate of complications may be substantially higher. Even among those who do not suffer from serious complications, 5% of patients require reoperation within five years of the procedure, and in general it is not yet clear what one would expect from spine surgery during the long-term. Taking into account that signs and symptoms of spinal deformity cannot be changed by surgical intervention, surgery remains to be a cosmetic indication. Unfortunately, the cosmetic effects of surgery are not necessarily stable.

Possible causes that lead to the condition of Lumbar hyperlordosis are the following:

- Spines – Natural factors of how spines are formed greatly increase certain individuals' likelihood to experience a strain or sprain in their back or neck. Factors such as having more lumbar vertebrae allowing for too much flexibility, and then in cases of less lumbar the individual not reaching their necessity for flexibility and then pushing their bodies to injury.

- Legs – Another odd body formation is when an individual has a leg shorter than the other, which can be immediate cause for imbalance of hips then putting strain on the posture of the back which an individual has to adjust into vulnerable positions to meet aesthetic appearances. This can lead to permanent damage in the back. Genu recurvatum (sway back knees) is also a factor that forces a dancer to adjust into unstable postures.

- Hips – Common problems in the hips are tight hip flexors, which causes for poor lifting posture, hip flexion contracture, which means the lack of postural awareness, and thoracic hyperkyphosis, which causes the individual to compensate for limited hip turn out (which is essential to dances such as ballet). Weak psoas (short for iliopsoas-muscle that controls the hip flexor) force the dancer to lift from strength of their back instead of from the hip when lifting their leg into arabesque or attitude. This causes great stress and risk of injury, especially because the dancer will have to compensate to obtain the positions required.

- Muscles – One of the greatest contributors is uneven muscles. Because all muscles have a muscle that works in opposition to it, it is imperative that to keep all muscles protected, the opposite muscle is not stronger than the muscle at risk. In the situation of lumbar lordosis, abdominal muscles are weaker than the muscles in the lumbar spine and the hamstring muscles. The muscular imbalance results in pulling down the pelvis in the front of the body, creating the swayback in the spine.

- Growth spurt – Younger dancers are more at risk for development of lumbar hyperlordosis because the lumbar fascia and hamstrings tighten when a child starts to experience a growth spurt into adolescence.

Technical factors

- Improper lifts – When male dancers are performing dance lifts with another dancer they are extremely prone to lift in the incorrect posture, pushing their arms up to lift the other dancer, while letting their core and spine curve which is easy to then hyperlordosis in a dancer's back.

- Overuse – Over 45% of anatomical sites of injury in dancers are in the lower back. This can be attributed to the strains of repetitive dance training may lead to minor trauma. If the damaged site is not given time to heal the damage of the injury will increase. Abrupt increases in dance intensity or sudden changes in dance choreography do not allow the body to adapt to the new stresses. New styles of dance, returning to dance, or increasing dance time by a great deal will result in exhaustion of the body.

The cost of scoliosis involves both monetary losses and lifestyle limitations that increase with severity. Respiratory deficiencies may also arise from thoracic deformities and cause abnormal breathing. This directly affects exercise and work capacity, decreasing the overall quality of life.

In the health care system of the United States, the average hospital cost for cases involving surgical procedures was $30,000 to $60,000 per patient in 2010. As of 2006, the cost of bracing has been published as up to $5,000 during rapid growth periods, when braces must be consistently replaced across multiple follow-ups.

The cause is not currently known, and the condition appears to be multifactorial. Several candidate genes (such as FBN1, which has been associated with Marfan) have been proposed and excluded.

Kyphosis (from Greek κυφός "kyphos", a hump) is an abnormally excessive convex "kyphotic" curvature of the spine as it occurs in the cervical, thoracic and sacral regions. (Abnormal inward concave "lordotic" curving of the cervical and lumbar regions of the spine is called lordosis.) Kyphosis can be called roundback or Kelso's hunchback. It can result from degenerative diseases such as arthritis; developmental problems, most commonly Scheuermann's disease; osteoporosis with compression fractures of the vertebra; multiple myeloma or trauma. A normal thoracic spine extends from the 1st to the 12th vertebra and should have a slight kyphotic angle, ranging from 20° to 45°. When the "roundness" of the upper spine increases past 45° it is called kyphosis or "hyperkyphosis". Scheuermann's kyphosis is the most classic form of hyperkyphosis and is the result of wedged vertebrae that develop during adolescence. The cause is not currently known and the condition appears to be multifactorial and is seen more frequently in males than females.

In the sense of a deformity, it is the pathological curving of the spine, where parts of the spinal column lose some or all of their lordotic profile. This causes a bowing of the back, seen as a slouching posture.

While most cases of kyphosis are mild and only require routine monitoring, serious cases can be debilitating. High degrees of kyphosis can cause severe pain and discomfort, breathing and digestion difficulties, cardiovascular irregularities, neurological compromise and, in the more severe cases, significantly shortened life spans. These types of high-end curves typically do not respond well to conservative treatment and almost always warrant spinal fusion surgery, which can restore the body's natural degree of curvature.

Many with Scheuermann's disease often have an excessive lordotic curve in the lumbar spine; this is the body's natural way to compensate for the kyphotic curve above. Interestingly, many with Scheuermann's disease have very large lung capacities and males often have broad, barrel chests. Most people have forced vital capacity (FVC) scores above average. It has been proposed that this is the body's natural way to compensate for a loss of breathing depth.

Often patients have tight hamstrings, which, again, is related to the body compensating for excessive spinal curvature, though this is also debated (for example, some suggest the tightness of ligament is the initial cause of the growth abnormality). In addition to the common lordosis, it has been suggested that between 20–30% of patients with Scheuermann's Disease also have scoliosis, though most cases are negligible. In more serious cases, however, the combination is classified as a separate condition known as kyphoscoliosis.

Lumbar hyperlordosis is a condition that occurs when the lumbar region (lower back) experiences stress or extra weight and is arched to point of muscle pain or spasms. Lumbar hyperlordosis is a common postural position where the natural curve of the lumbar region of the back is slightly or dramatically accentuated. Commonly known as swayback, it is common in dancers. Imbalances in muscle strength and length are also a cause, such as weak hamstrings, or tight hip flexors (psoas). A major feature of lumbar hyperlordosis is a forward pelvic tilt, resulting in the pelvis resting on top of the thighs.

Other health conditions and disorders can cause hyperlordosis. Achondroplasia (a disorder where bones grow abnormally which can result in short stature as in dwarfism), Spondylolisthesis (a condition in which vertebrae slip forward) and osteoporosis (the most common bone disease in which bone density is lost resulting in bone weakness and increased likelihood of fracture) are some of the most common causes of hyperlordosis. Other causes include obesity, hyperkyphosis (spine curvature disorder in which the thoracic curvature is abnormally rounded), discitits (an inflammation of the intervertebral disc space caused by infection) and benign juvenile lordosis. Other factors may also include those with rare diseases, as is the case with Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (EDS), where hyper-extensive and usually unstable joints (e.g. joints that are problematically much more flexible, frequently to the point of partial or full dislocation) are quite common throughout the body. With such hyper-extensibility, it is also quite common (if not the norm) to find the muscles surrounding the joints to be a major source of compensation when such instability exists.

Excessive lordotic curvature – lumbar hyperlordosis, is also called hollow back, and saddle back (after a similar condition that affects some horses); swayback usually refers to a nearly opposite postural misalignment that can initially look quite similar. Common causes of lumbar hyperlordosis include tight low back muscles, excessive visceral fat, and pregnancy. Rickets, a vitamin D deficiency in children, can cause lumbar lordosis.

The vertebral column, also known as the backbone or spine, is part of the axial skeleton. The vertebral column is the defining characteristic of a vertebrate, in which the notochord (a flexible rod of uniform composition) found in all chordates has been replaced by a segmented series of bones—vertebrae separated by intervertebral discs. The vertebral column houses the spinal canal, a cavity that encloses and protects the spinal cord.

There are about 50,000 species of animals that have a vertebral column. The human vertebral column is one of the most-studied examples.

Excessive or abnormal spinal curvature is classed as a spinal disease or dorsopathy and includes the following abnormal curvatures:

- Kyphosis is an exaggerated kyphotic (concave) curvature in the thoracic region, also called hyperkyphosis. This produces the so-called "humpback" or "dowager's hump", a condition commonly resulting from osteoporosis.

- Lordosis as an exaggerated lordotic (convex) curvature of the lumbar region, is known as lumbar hyperlordosis and also as "swayback". Temporary lordosis is common during pregnancy.

- Scoliosis, lateral curvature, is the most common abnormal curvature, occurring in 0.5% of the population. It is more common among females and may result from unequal growth of the two sides of one or more vertebrae, so that they do not fuse properly. It can also be caused by pulmonary atelectasis (partial or complete deflation of one or more lobes of the lungs) as observed in asthma or pneumothorax.

- Kyphoscoliosis, a combination of kyphosis and scoliosis.

A neutral spine or good posture refers to the "three natural curves [that] are present in a healthy spine." Looking directly at the front or back of the body, the 33 vertebrae in the spinal column should appear completely vertical. From a side view, the cervical (neck) region of the spine (C1-C7) is bent inward, the thoracic (upper back) region (T1-T12) bends outward, and the lumbar (lower back) region (L1-L5) bends inward. The sacrum (tailbone area) (S1-S5 fused) and coccyx (on average 4 fused) rest between the pelvic bones. A neutral pelvis indicates the anterior superior iliac spines and pubic symphysis fall in the same vertical line.

Hemivertebrae are wedge-shaped vertebrae and therefore can cause an angle in the spine (such as kyphosis, scoliosis, and lordosis).

Among the congenital vertebral anomalies, hemivertebrae are the most likely to cause neurologic problems. The most common location is the midthoracic vertebrae, especially the eighth (T8). Neurologic signs result from severe angulation of the spine, narrowing of the spinal canal, instability of the spine, and luxation or fracture of the vertebrae. Signs include rear limb weakness or paralysis, urinary or fecal incontinence, and spinal pain. Most cases of hemivertebrae have no or mild symptoms, so treatment is usually conservative. Severe cases may respond to surgical spinal cord decompression and vertebral stabilization.

Associations

Recognised associations are many and include:

Aicardi syndrome,

cleidocranial dysostosis,

gastroschisis 3,

Gorlin syndrome,

fetal pyelectasis 3,

Jarcho-Levin syndrome,

OEIS complex,

VACTERL association.

The probable cause of hemivertebrae is a lack of blood supply causing part of the vertebrae not to form.

Hemivertebrae in dogs are most common in the tail, resulting in a screw shape.

Congenital vertebral anomalies are a collection of malformations of the spine. Most around 85% are not clinically significant, but they can cause compression of the spinal cord by deforming the vertebral canal or causing instability. This condition occurs in the womb. Congenital vertebral anomalies include alterations of the shape and number of vertebrae.

Coxa vara is a deformity of the hip, whereby the angle between the head and the shaft of the femur is reduced to less than 120 degrees. This results in the leg being shortened, and the development of a limp. It is commonly caused by injury, such as a fracture. It can also occur when the bone tissue in the neck of the femur is softer than normal, causing it to bend under the weight of the body. This may either be congenital or the result of a bone disorder. The most common cause of coxa vara is either congenital or developmental. Other common causes include metabolic bone diseases (e.g. Paget's disease of bone), post-Perthes deformity, osteomyelitis, and post traumatic (due to improper healing of a fracture between the greater and lesser trochanter). Shepherd's Crook deformity is a severe form of coxa vara where the proximal femur is severely deformed with a reduction in the neck shaft angle beyond 90 degrees. It is most commonly a sequela of osteogenesis imperfecta, Pagets disease, osteomyelitis, tumour and tumour-like conditions (e.g. fibrous dysplasia).

Coxa vara can happen in cleidocranial dysostosis.

Swayback refers to abnormal bent-back postures in humans and in quadrupeds, especially horses.

Swayback posture in humans is characterised by the posterior displacement of the rib cage in comparison to the pelvis. It looks like the person has a hyperextension of the natural lordosis, however this is not necessarily the case. Most sway-back exhibits a posteriorly tilted pelvis; the lumbar region is usually flat (too flexed) and not hyperlordotic (too extended).

In early skeletal development, a common physis serves the greater trochanter and the capital femoral epiphysis. This physis divides as growth continues in a balance that favors the capital epiphysis and creates a normal neck shaft angle (angle between the femoral shaft and the neck). The corresponding angle at maturity is 135 ± 7 degrees. Another angle used for the measurement of coxa vara is the cervicofemoral angle which is approximately 35 degrees at infancy and increases to 45 degrees after maturity.

Scoliosis is well established and even evaluated at an early age. It is typically quantified using the standardized Cobb angle method. This method consists of measuring the degree of deformity by the angle between two successive vertebrae. The Cobb method was accepted by the Scoliosis Research Society (SRS) in 1966. It serves as the standard method for quantification of scoliosis deformities. Sagittal plane posture aberrations such as cervical and lumbar lordosis and thoracic kyphosis have yet to be quantified due to considerable inter-individual variability in normal sagittal curvature. The Cobb method was also one of the first techniques used to quantify sagittal deformity. As a 2D measurement technique it has limitations and new techniques are being proposed for measurement of these curvatures. Most recently, 3D imaging techniques using computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance (MR) have been attempted. These techniques are promising but lack the reliability and validity necessary to be used as a reference for clinical purposes.

Posture assessment has also become quite popular in many practical environments like the personal training and sports conditioning settings. The need for reliable methods of posture assessment as a screening tool is warranted. Current available programs such as those through the National Posture Institute (NPI) and Posture Print are recommended for the practical setting but cost close to $1000 and are clearly a profiteering scam by individuals not at all concerned with human well-being.

Chronic deviations from neutral spine lead to improper posture, increased stress on the back and causes discomfort and damage. People who sit for long hours on the job are susceptible to a number of misalignments.

"Neutral spine" is ideally maintained while sitting, standing, and sleeping.

The consequences of whiplash range from mild pain for a few days (which is the case for most people), to severe disability. It seems that around 50% will have some remaining symptoms.

Alterations in resting state cerebral blood flow have been demonstrated in patients with chronic pain after whiplash injury. There is evidence for persistent inflammation in the neck in patients with chronic pain after whiplash injury.

There has long been a proposed link between whiplash injuries and the development of temporomandibular joint dysfunction (TMD). A recent review concluded that although there are contradictions in the literature, overall there is moderate evidence that TMD can occasionally follow whiplash injury, and that the incidence of this occurrence is low to moderate.

Obesity, sedentary lifestyle, and lack of exercise can increase a person's risk of back pain. People who smoke are more likely to experience back pain than others. Poor posture and weight gain in pregnancy are also risk factors for back pain. In general, fatigue can worsen pain.

A few studies suggest that psychosocial factors such as on-the-job stress and dysfunctional family relationships may correlate more closely with back pain than structural abnormalities revealed in X-rays and other medical imaging scans.

There is moderate quality evidence that suggests the combination of education and exercise may reduce an individual's risk of developing an episode of low back pain. Lesser quality evidence points to exercise alone as a possible deterrent to the risk of the onset of this condition.

Toe walking refers to a condition where a person walks on their toes without putting much weight on the heel or any other part of the foot. Toe walking in toddlers is common. These children usually adopt a normal walking pattern as they grow older. If a child continues to walk on their toes past the age of three, they should be evaluated by a doctor.

Toe walking can be caused by different factors. One type of toe walking is also called "habitual" or "idiopathic" toe walking, where the cause is unknown. Other causes include a congenital short Achilles tendon, muscle spasticity (especially as associated with cerebral palsy) and paralytic muscle disease such as Duchenne muscular dystrophy. A congenital shortening of the Achilles tendon can be hereditary, can take place over time as the result of abnormal foot structure which shortens the tendon, or can shorten over time if its full length is not being used. Toe walking is sometimes caused by a bone block located at the ankle which prevents the antagonist movement, dorsiflexion. This cause is often associated with trauma or arthritis. It may also be one way of accommodating a separate condition, foot drop. Persistent toe walking in children has been identified as a potential early sign of autism.

Toe walking has been found to be more prevalent in males than females when tested with very large numbers of children. This study looked for family history of toe walking and the connection to children demonstrating ITW. 64.2% of the subjects with ITW were males showing a relationship between ITW and males. Of 348 subjects with positive family history of toe walking, about 60% had family history on the paternal side showing it may be genetically related to paternal genes. In 30-42% of idiopathic toe walkers, a family link has been observed.

The exact injury mechanism that causes whiplash injuries is unknown. A whiplash injury may be the result of impulsive retracting of the spine, mainly the ligament: anterior longitudinal ligament which is stretched or tears, as the head snaps forward and then back again causing a whiplash injury.

A whiplash injury from an automobile accident is called a cervical acceleration–deceleration injury. Cadaver studies have shown that as an automobile occupant is hit from behind, the forces from the seat back compress the kyphosis of the thoracic spine, which provides an axial load on the lumbar spine and cervical spine. This forces the cervical spine to deform into an S-shape where the lower cervical spine is forced into a kyphosis while the upper cervical spine maintains its lordosis. As the injury progresses, the whole cervical spine is finally hyper-extended.

Whiplash may be caused by any motion similar to a rear-end collision in a motor vehicle, such as may take place on a roller coaster or other rides at an amusement park, sports injuries such as skiing accidents, other modes of transportation such as airplane travel, or from being hit, kicked or shaken.. The alleged shaken baby syndrome can result in a whiplash injury.

Whiplash associated disorders sometimes include injury to the cerebrum. In a severe cervical acceleration–deceleration syndrome, a brain injury known as a coup-contra-coup injury occurs. A coup-contra-coup injury occurs as the brain is accelerated into the cranium as the head and neck hyperextend, and is then accelerated into the other side as the head and neck rebound to hyper-flexion or neutral position.

"Volunteer studies of experimental, low-velocity rear-end collisions have shown a percentage of subjects to report short-lived symptoms",

From this type of research it has been inferred that whiplash symptoms might not always have any pathological (injury) explanation. However, over the last decade, academic surgeons in the UK and US have sought to unravel the whiplash enigma. A 1000-case, four-year observational study published in 2012 said that the "missing link" in whiplash injuries is the trapezius muscle which may be damaged through eccentric muscle contraction during the whiplash mechanism described above and below. Another study suggested that "shneck pain" was in the nearby supraspinatus muscle and this resulted from a seemingly asymptomatic form of shoulder impingement. Shoulder impingement is commonly asymptomatic and the shoulder may be injured along with the neck in a motor vehicle accident. Whiplash due to The Referred Shoulder Impingement Syndrome was successfully treated using conventional treatments for shoulder impingement including anti inflammatory steroids and non steroids, and by avoiding the overhead position of shoulder impingement during the day and night time. All of this work demonstrates that historically and indeed presently whiplash patients' pain sources may be missed if it is outside of the neck. Hence the pathology in whiplash may have been missed and the treatment ineffective.

Altogether it is of note that especially in many Western countries, after a motor vehicle collision, those involved seek health care for the assessment of injuries and for insurance documentation purposes. In contrast, in many less wealthy countries, there may be limited access to care and insurance may only be available to the wealthy. Against this background, the “(late) whiplash syndrome” (ICD-10: S13.4) has been one special focus of continuous and controversial scientific research since the 1950s as the worldwide incidence of such injuries varies enormously 16-2000 per 100,000 population and the late whiplash syndrome in these cases varies between 18% to 40%. Thus, Schrader et al’s important work in "The Lancet" showed that late whiplash syndrome after a motor vehicle collision is rare or uncommon in Lithuania, and Cassidy et al’s conclusion in the "New England Journal of Medicine" is that “the elimination of compensation for pain and suffering is associated with a decreased incidence and improved prognosis of whiplash injury”. Moreover, one should also mention an experimental study in 2001 in which participants were placed in a stationary vehicle with a curtain blocking their rear view, and exposed to a simulated rear-end collision. Twenty percent of patients had symptoms at 3 days, despite the fact that no collision actually occurred. From the evolving viewpoint of naturalistic Internet search engine analytics in has been shown in 2017 that the expectations for receiving compensation may influence Internet search behavior in relation to whiplash injury.

Studies have been performed to determine the source of the association between toe walking and cerebral palsy patients. One study suggests that the toe walking—sometimes called an equinus gait—associated with cerebral palsy presents with an abnormally short medial and lateral gastrocnemius and soleus—the primary muscles involved in plantarflexion. A separate study found that the gait could be a compensatory movement due to weakened plantarflexion muscles. The study performed clinical studies to determine that a greater plantarflexion force is required for normal heel-to-toe walking than for toe walking. Able bodied children were tasked to perform gaits at different levels of toe walking and the study discovered that their toe walking could not reduce the force to the levels that cerebral palsy patients indicated in their walk. This suggests that cerebral palsy in which an equinus gait is present may be due to abnormally weakened plantarflexion that can only manage toe walking.

Maternal deficiencies may be the cause of overt bone disease from before birth and impairment of bone quality after birth. The primary cause of congenital rickets is vitamin D deficiency in the mother's blood, which the baby shares. Vitamin D ensures that serum phosphate and calcium levels are sufficient to facilitate the mineralization of bone. Congenital rickets may also be caused by other maternal diseases, including severe osteomalacia, untreated celiac disease, malabsorption, pre-eclampsia, and premature birth. Rickets in children is similar to osteoporosis in the elderly, with brittle bones. Pre-natal care includes checking vitamin levels and ensuring that any deficiencies are supplemented.

Also exclusively breast-fed infants may require rickets prevention by vitamin D supplementation or an increased exposure to sunlight.

In sunny countries such as Nigeria, South Africa, and Bangladesh, there is sufficient endogenous vitamin D due to exposure to the sun. However, the disease occurs among older toddlers and children in these countries, which in these circumstances is attributed to low dietary calcium intakes due to a mainly cereal-based diet.

Those at higher risk for developing rickets include:

- Breast-fed infants whose mothers are not exposed to sunlight

- Breast-fed infants who are not exposed to sunlight

- Breast-fed babies who are exposed to little sunlight

- Adolescents, in particular when undergoing the pubertal growth spurt

- Any child whose diet does not contain enough vitamin D or calcium