Infection Causing Severe Kyphosis

On Dr. Rinella's mission trips to Colombia, he encountered several children becoming paralyzed from severe kyphosis. In these cases, tuberculosis caused the spine to break down and lean forward, placing severe pressure on the spinal cord. With the help of his advanced team, he was able to reconstruct the spine and save the children's ability to walk. With JC, the infection was diagnosed when he was 45 days old (see MRI). Over time, the bones began to grow toward the spinal canal instead of vertically. This placed severe pressure on the nerves, and caused his legs to become weak.