We travelled to San Diego last Wednesday for a vacation and a medical visit. My daughter has scoliosis, and unlike the "typical" kind where there's a curvature to an otherwise complete spine, she's actually missing one of two bones on one side of her spine, causing the moderate bend. We've been talking to numerous doctors over the course of the last couple of years as we've been monitoring it, and we've found a specialist that comes highly recommended, only his practice is in San Diego. So we took her down for an examination and a visit and we came away with some very optimistic news.
There does remain a possibility of needing surgery, but at this point, the angle has not really moved or increased as she has grown. There's some factors related to bones and tissue, and the way she is developing is not causing the angle to increase. There's a chance it will as she goes through growth periods, and we'll be monitoring it closely so we'll be able to take the appropriate actions should any be needed. But there's also a chance she'll never need anything surgical. It's not a guarantee and there's a stronger potential that there will be a need for something to be done, but it's a welcome relief to know that, for the time being, she'll be able to avoid surgery, and if she does have to face that at some time, she'll likely be doing so when she's older then 5 and more capable of understanding the need and reasoning behind it.