Scheuermann's disease

views updated

Scheuermann's disease (adolescent kyphosis) (shoi-er-manz) n. a disorder of spinal growth, arising in adolescence, in which three or more vertebrae, usually in the thoracic spine, become wedge-shaped, resulting in backache and exaggerated outward curvature of the spine (kyphosis). [ H. W. Scheuermann (1877–1960), Danish surgeon]