Changes in body posture in children with first-degree scoliosis taking part in corrective exercises in a water environment.

Background. Swimming and aquatic exercises are a very attractive form of movement for children and young people, which is helpful in correcting posture defects. The water environment relieves pressure on the spine, relaxes muscles, and makes it easier to assume the proper posture. Swimming allows to join pleasure - water play and learning to swim - with therapeutic action. The primary purpose of our research was to evaluate the effectiveness of corrective swimming, based on our own program, and to determine the effect on swimming on spine arrangement in two position in children with posture defects. Material and methods. We studied 106 children (age 9-12). All these had been referred for corrective swimming by a specialist. The subjects were examined twice at a three-month interval. In particular we analyzed the shape of lordosis and kyphosis and the symmetry of the trunk in the frontal plane. We evaluated spinal positioning using a computer program designed to assess posture by photogramometry. Results. The initial results showed that posture defects are very common in children. The primary defects are rounded backs, concave-rounded back, and asymmetry of shoulders and shoulder blades. Conclusions. Our initial research shows that the computer photogram can be used for diagnosis and outcome measurement in hydrotherapy for children with posture defects.