The spine is critical in maintaining a correct posture,
meaning an efficient, natural, good-looking posture that
does not put pressure on internal organs, and helps the human
body to move in a harmonious way with minimal fatigue.
In comparison, a poor posture indicates deformity of
the spinal cord, thoracic parts, or arms and legs1). A poor
posture is related to asymmetrical use of the body for functional
activities, and if prolonged, one’s posture is altered
due to musculoskeletal imbalance2). It also causes abnormality
in vital dynamics and may cause related problems.
Among orthopedic disorders, spinal postural change is the
most frequently observed3). Specifically, the occurrence of
scoliosis is a growing cause of spinal deformity and posture
alteration, and it is defined as spinal deformity with a spinal
curve 10 degree4, 5). Scoliosis is classified by the degree of
curvature as mild (< 20°), moderate (20–45°) and sever (>
45°)6). Mild scoliosis is very common, with the prevalence
rate of idiopathic scoliosis of more being 1.5–1.7% and that
for 20 degree or more being 0.2% 107). Regarding treatment
of scoliosis, mild scoliosis is treated with physical exercise
therapy, moderate scoliosis is treated with a brace and/or
cast and physical exercise therapy, and severe scoliosis is
treat with surgery8, 9).
In adulthood, the majority of patients with scoliosis suffer
from back pain, and if the curve progresses to be very
large, even pulmonary dysfunction and psychological distress
can occur10). The aim of mild scoliosis treatment is
to prevent the aggravation of the deformity and pain and
pulmonary dysfunction over the course of a lifetime11).
Scoliosis can be largely divided into a structural and
nonstructural type. The former indicates a curved spine
with a rotated vertebra, while the latter shows a symptom of
a flat back in trunk flexion and no rotation of the vertebra.
Nonstructural scoliosis may accompany pain and muscle
spasm may be caused by leg length discrepancy12). Therefore,
it might cause abnormal vital dynamics in the musculoskeletal
system around the spine and muscle imbalance in
the area, and possibly aggravate the scoliosis. Accordingly,
it might affect temporomandibular joint mobility, in addition
to lumbar and thoracic parts, which is influenced by
cervical movement. With this as the background, this study
examined the change in the range of motion (ROM) of the
temporomandibular joint (TMJ) resulting from a decreased
degree of mild scoliosis curvanture