Scoliosis Medical Association" (2003) asserted the lifelong physical health, including cardiopulmonary and neurological functions, and mental health of idiopathic scoliosis patients are comparable to those of the general population. Scoliosis that interferes with normal systemic functions is "exceptional" and "rare", and "untreated [scoliosis] patients had similar death rates and were just as functional and likely to lead productive lives 50 years after diagnosis as people with normal spines". In an earlier University of Iowa follow-up study, 91 percent of idiopathic scoliosis patients displayed normal pulmonary function, and their life expectancy was 2% longer than that of the general population. Generally, the
Neuromechanics of idiopathic scoliosis scoliosis that appear after the age of 10 years, account for 89% of idiopathic scoliosis. From these statistics, it seems that individuals are at highest risk of developing idiopathic scoliosis during adolescence. Because scoliotic people have higher joint laxity compared to non-scoliotic people, they are drawn toward gymnastics but the practice of gymnastics for less than 20 hours training per week does not cause scoliosis. Based on populations that had more than 20 hours training per week, idiopathic scoliosis has been observed among 10% of tennis players, 16% of young swimmers and 24% in professional ballet companies. The exposure of