Can Scoliosis Cause Neuropathy? Charlotte NC | Numbness, Nerve Roots, Cord | Clear Life Scoliosis

By Dr. Justin Dick, DC · Clear Life Scoliosis and Chiropractic Center, Charlotte, NC · Published October 26, 2026

Scoliosis can compress nerve roots in adults with lumbar curves, which causes numbness, tingling, or weakness in one leg. That is radiculopathy. I found no published evidence that scoliosis causes peripheral neuropathy, the glove-and-stocking numbness of both feet that usually comes from diabetes, vitamin deficiency, or inherited nerve disease, and I cannot confirm that link. The documented relationship runs the other way: in a study of 175 patients with Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease, an inherited neuropathy, 26 percent had a spinal deformity.

I am Dr. Justin Dick at Clear Life Scoliosis and Chiropractic Center in Charlotte, NC. Patients often use "neuropathy" for any nerve symptom. The distinction matters, because each pattern points to a different cause and a different test.

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Three Different Nerve Problems

Radiculopathy is irritation or compression of a single nerve root as it leaves the spine. It follows one root's map, usually on one side. Peripheral neuropathy affects many nerves at their far ends and typically starts in both feet. Myelopathy is compression or disease of the spinal cord itself and can cause clumsiness, balance trouble, and brisk reflexes. Scoliosis is linked with the first and, in specific circumstances, the third.

Nerve Root Compression in Adult Scoliosis

In adults with degenerative lumbar scoliosis, the nerve openings narrow on the concave side of the curve. Fu and colleagues found at least one level of severe foraminal stenosis in 97 percent of 36 adults seeking surgery, and 76 percent of those with a single radiculopathy had pain matching the most severe stenosis. Hawasli and colleagues found that patients 55 or older were about five times more likely to have a sensory deficit (odds ratio 5.2) and a motor deficit (odds ratio 5) than younger patients. My post on stenosis with scoliosis covers this group.

When Neuropathy Causes the Scoliosis

Horacek and colleagues reviewed radiographs of 175 patients with hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy (Charcot-Marie-Tooth disease). Twenty-six percent had a spinal deformity: 58 percent of those had scoliosis, 31 percent kyphoscoliosis, and 11 percent thoracic hyperkyphosis. The rate varied by gene, and all 6 patients with a myelin protein zero mutation had a deformity. A child or adult with scoliosis plus high arches, foot drop, or a family history of neuropathy should have that possibility considered. My post on what causes scoliosis covers neuromuscular types.

When the Spinal Cord Is Involved

A small share of curves that look idiopathic have an abnormality inside the spinal canal. Xu and colleagues reviewed 714 adolescents with scoliosis who had whole-spine MRI and found intramedullary abnormalities in 9.5 percent. Male sex, a left thoracic curve, a sharply angled curve, abnormal abdominal reflexes, and ankle clonus were independent risk factors. Zhang and colleagues found neural axis abnormalities in 18.7 percent of 504 children under 10 with presumed idiopathic scoliosis. Abnormal reflexes on exam are a reason for MRI, not for watching.

How Dr. Justin Dick Sorts Nerve Symptoms at Clear Life

At our Charlotte office, every scoliosis evaluation includes reflexes, including abdominal reflexes, sensation by dermatome, strength by myotome, and gait. One-sided root patterns are correlated with radiographs and MRI when clinically indicated. Symmetric foot numbness is referred for medical workup of peripheral neuropathy. Signs of cord involvement are referred for MRI and specialist review.

Comparison

Research and Evidence

Evidence tiering: Fu, Hawasli, Horacek, Xu, and Zhang are retrospective or cross-sectional cohorts. The statement that scoliosis does not cause peripheral neuropathy reflects the absence of evidence in my search, not a study proving no link, and I label it that way. The diagnostic sorting described above is standard neurological examination reasoning.

My own published work includes neurological findings after conservative care. The cervical rehabilitation case report, Radiographic Sagittal Alignment and Neurological Changes Following Conservative Cervical Structural Rehabilitation After Motor Vehicle Collision in a Patient With Pre-existing Scoliosis: A Case Report (Cureus, 2026, PMID 41783554), describes a 28-year-old woman with pre-existing thoracic scoliosis whose right C8 sensory loss and C5 to C8 weakness after a motor vehicle collision normalized after 17 visits of conservative care. It is a single case, and causation cannot be established from it.

References

1. Fu KM, Rhagavan P, Shaffrey CI, Chernavvsky DR, Smith JS. Prevalence, severity, and impact of foraminal and canal stenosis among adults with degenerative scoliosis. Neurosurgery. 2011;69(6):1181-7. doi:10.1227/NEU.0b013e31822a9aeb
2. Hawasli AH, Chang J, Yarbrough CK, et al. Interpedicular height as a predictor of radicular pain in adult degenerative scoliosis. Spine J. 2016;16(9):1070-8. doi:10.1016/j.spinee.2016.04.017
3. Horacek O, Mazanec R, Morris CE, Kobesova A. Spinal deformities in hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy: a retrospective qualitative, quantitative, genotypical, and familial analysis of 175 patients. Spine. 2007;32(22):2502-8. doi:10.1097/BRS.0b013e3181573d4e
4. Xu W, Zhang X, Zhu Y, et al. An analysis of clinical risk factors for adolescent scoliosis caused by spinal cord abnormalities in China: proposal for a selective whole-spine MRI examination scheme. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2020;21(1):187. doi:10.1186/s12891-020-3182-z
5. Zhang W, Sha S, Xu L, et al. The prevalence of intraspinal anomalies in infantile and juvenile patients with presumed idiopathic scoliosis: a MRI-based analysis of 504 patients. BMC Musculoskelet Disord. 2016;17:189. doi:10.1186/s12891-016-1026-7
6. Dick JM, Paige P. Radiographic sagittal alignment and neurological changes following conservative cervical structural rehabilitation after motor vehicle collision in a patient with pre-existing scoliosis: a case report. Cureus. 2026;18(3):e104584. doi:10.7759/cureus.104584

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Service Area

Clear Life Scoliosis and Chiropractic Center sees patients from Charlotte NC, Huntersville NC, Ballantyne NC, Matthews NC, Concord NC, Mooresville NC, Rock Hill SC, Fort Mill SC. Families from across the Charlotte region and the South Carolina border communities come to the Rachel Freeman Way office for radiographic scoliosis evaluation with Dr. Justin Dick.

Related Pages

• Spinal Stenosis Exercises With Scoliosis
• What Causes Scoliosis
• Thoracic Scoliosis
• Scoliosis Treatment for Adults
• Pinched Nerve vs Herniated Disc
• Hip Pain and Sciatica
• Infantile Scoliosis
• Juvenile Scoliosis
• How to Read a Spine MRI Report
• Dr. Justin Dick Research

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If you have scoliosis and new numbness, tingling, or weakness, the pattern on exam decides the next test. Dr. Justin Dick provides that exam at our Charlotte office.

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