Scoliosis specific exercises (PSSE) are not your traditional Physiotherapy exercises such as side bends and book openings. PSSE are delivered by certified Physiotherapists who practice using the BSTPS (Schroth) principles.
Research published by the Scoliosis Research Society has shown that PSSE, when used in the right patient can help prevent a curve from worsening and requiring the need for bracing.
The picture below shows the spine in blocks, the goal of these exercises is to reorganise these blocks using specific exercises. PSSE Exercises are taught to the patient in de-collapsing and expanding the closed sections of the torso. The exercises teach the patient in activating the correct muscles around the torso with the aim of re-shaping the spine. The exercises will help the patient in improving their endurance in un-loaded static positions such as side lying and then progressed to dynamic positions such as walking.
Our Physio team at Frenchs Forest and Macquarie Park are trained at providing PSSE exercises for scoliosis.
The sessions are focused on educating the patient and their family about which muscles are being lengthened and which are weak. Our goal is to help you understand the principles of scoliosis exercises and ensure you are able to perform them independently at home.
We prefer to teach these exercises spread out over a 3 month period. Alternatively these exercises can be taught intensively over 1 week. The intensive style sessions are (two 60-minute sessions/day for 5 days). These are best suited for those who travel from a distance or want to learn the technique over a period of holidays.