Postural kyphosis (kye-FOH-sis) is a rounding or hunching of the upper back. It is caused by poor posture (slouching). It happens most often in teens. It can lead to sore muscles in the upper back and shoulders.

Learning to sit and stand up straight and doing exercises to make the back stronger can help improve postural kyphosis.

Follow your health care provider's instructions for:

• Any exercises or stretches your child should do to strengthen their back muscles.
• Starting physical therapy to improve posture.
• Whether your child needs to see an orthopedic (bone) specialist.
• Giving your child pain medicine such as acetaminophen (Tylenol^® or a store brand) or ibuprofen (Advil^®, Motrin^®, or a store brand) for sore muscles. Follow the package directions for how much to give and how often. 
• When to follow up.

Encourage your child to: 

• Sit with their chin tucked, neck and back straight, shoulders back, and feet on the ground.
• Make sure they are sitting on a chair with good lower back support.
• Keep books, mobile phones, and computers at eye level.
• Get up to stretch and move around often.
• Avoid sleeping on the floor or sofa, and sleep on a firm mattress, if possible.
• Use heat or ice on sore back muscles for 20 minutes at a time a few times a day. (Wrap the heating pad or ice pack in a thin towel, so it is not directly touching the skin.)

• Your child has new or worsening pain.
• You think your child's postural kyphosis is getting worse.

Why do teens get postural kyphosis? Slouching stretches the muscles and ligaments (tough bands of tissues that connect bones to other bones). The stretched muscles and ligaments pull the bones of the spine forward, resulting in a round shape of the upper back.