Custom scoliosis bracing, fit in-house by one of a small number of authorized chiropractors.
Scoliosis affects roughly 2 to 3 percent of the U.S. population. The standard advice is still "watch and wait" until the curve is bad enough for surgery. The problem with watching and waiting is that progressive curves do not wait for you. Spine and Wellness Center Lakewood Ranch offers a real conservative path: custom Spinal Technology braces fit in-office by Dr. Mike Banman, master-level scoliosis trained and one of a small number of chiropractors authorized by Spinal Technology, Inc. to fit their braces directly. Day 1 is a curve assessment, not a sales pitch.
- Spinal Technology authorizedone of a small number of credentialed chiropractor fitters
- Master-level trainedscoliosis sub-specialty since 2003
- All ages, all curvesadolescent, juvenile, adult, post-surgical
What scoliosis is, and why bracing matters.
Scoliosis is a sideways curvature of the spine that often shows up in adolescence, but adults can develop it too. The right brace, fit at the right time, can make a real difference.
A three-dimensional spinal curve
Scoliosis is more than a sideways bend. The vertebrae also rotate, which is why one shoulder may sit higher, one hip may look uneven, or a rib hump may appear when the patient bends forward. We measure curve magnitude using the Cobb angle, taken from a standing X-ray.
Curves between roughly 10 and 25 degrees are usually classified as mild. Curves from 25 to 40 degrees are moderate. Curves over 40 degrees are typically considered severe and usually require a more involved care plan.
Slow progression and support posture
For adolescents who are still growing, evidence suggests that bracing may help slow curve progression, the goal is to keep the curve from getting worse during peak growth years. For adults, supportive bracing can help with posture awareness and pain management during longer activities.
Bracing isn't a stand-alone fix. It works best when paired with mobility-focused chiropractic adjustments, targeted exercise, and a realistic wear schedule. We build that plan together.
Master-Level Scoliosis Training
A focused, multi-week certification course in scoliosis assessment, bracing, and chiropractic co-management, completed in addition to standard doctorate-level training.
Master-trained at every step.
Dr. Michael Banman has been a practicing chiropractor since 2003, over 23 years of hands-on care, and scoliosis has been a focus the entire time. On top of his doctorate, he completed a master-level scoliosis course covering curve classification, brace selection, and the conservative co-management of adolescent and adult patients.
He is also one of a small number of chiropractors trained and authorized to fit braces from Spinal Technology, Inc., a leading U.S. orthotic manufacturer behind the Boston Brace™ family and other custom-fit scoliosis braces. That credential lets him prescribe and fit medical-grade braces in-office, working directly with the manufacturer's clinical specifications instead of referring you out to a separate orthotist.
That's the difference patients feel: every exam is anchored in a deep, structured framework, not a generalist's best guess. From the first postural assessment to the final brace fitting, you're working with a chiropractor who has spent his career studying this exact problem.
- 23+ years of chiropractic care, scoliosis-focused throughout
- Master-level scoliosis course completed (curve assessment, bracing, co-management)
- Spinal Technology, Inc. authorized provider, one of a small number of chiropractors approved to fit their custom braces
- Standing-X-ray Cobb-angle interpretation built into every exam
- Honest plans, we tell you when bracing fits, and when it doesn't
Scrub through twelve months of bracing.
Drag the timeline below to scrub through milestones in a typical adolescent bracing journey, see the curve respond and the pain score drop.
Starting Cobb angle: 32°
Initial postural exam and standing X-ray. Custom Spinal Technology brace ordered, fit, and broken in over the first weeks.
Outcomes vary. Treatment progression shown is illustrative and not a guarantee, book an exam to find out where you actually fall.
What to expect from start to finish.
Every scoliosis case is different, but the path through our office follows a clear, four-step rhythm.
Postural exam & imaging review
We start with a full postural exam, shoulder, hip, and rib alignment, forward-bend test, leg-length check, and review your standing scoliosis X-ray to measure the Cobb angle. Bring imaging if you have it.
Custom brace selection & fitting
Based on your curve pattern, age, and growth status, Dr. Banman recommends the right brace style and orders it through Spinal Technology, Inc., a leading U.S. orthotic manufacturer he is authorized to work with directly. Every brace is custom-fit to your spine, we don't dispense generic, off-the-shelf braces, and we walk through how to put it on and adjust it at home.
Co-managed chiropractic care
Bracing works best alongside chiropractic adjustments and targeted mobility work. We schedule adjustments around your wear plan to keep adjacent joints mobile and supporting muscles balanced.
Re-evaluation at scheduled checkpoints
We re-measure at predictable checkpoints, typically every few months, and adjust the brace, the wear schedule, or the chiropractic plan based on what your spine is actually doing.
Who scoliosis bracing is built for.
Bracing isn't right for every spine, but for the right candidate, it's one of the most studied, most conservative options available.
Adolescents (still growing)
Idiopathic scoliosis caught in the growth-spurt years, the most studied case for bracing.
Adults with mild-to-moderate curves
Adult scoliosis (often degenerative) where bracing supports posture and helps manage daily pain.
Post-surgical support
Patients recovering from spinal-fusion surgery who need supportive bracing as part of rehab.
Curves with related disc issues
Curves contributing to disc-related low-back or leg pain, bracing as part of a broader plan.
Postural concerns & uneven shoulders
Visible asymmetry, uneven shoulders or hips, rib hump on forward-bend, that hasn't been formally diagnosed yet.
Second opinions
Already braced or already considering surgery? A master-trained second opinion never hurts.
Quick answers about scoliosis bracing.
What kinds of scoliosis braces do you fit?
We work with custom braces from Spinal Technology, Inc., a leading U.S. orthotic manufacturer behind the Boston Brace™ family. Dr. Banman is one of a small number of chiropractors authorized to prescribe and fit their braces directly in-office. Options include rigid TLSO-style braces for adolescents and lower-profile, flexible bracing for adults. The right choice depends on your curve pattern, Cobb angle, growth status, and how the brace fits into daily life. Every brace is custom-fit, never off-the-shelf.
What ages benefit most from scoliosis bracing?
Bracing is most studied in adolescents who are still growing, where evidence suggests it may help slow curve progression. Adults with mild-to-moderate curves may also benefit from supportive bracing for posture awareness and pain management. We tailor the recommendation to the individual.
How many hours a day will I need to wear it?
It depends on the brace type and goal. Adolescent rigid braces are often worn 16 to 23 hours a day during peak growth. Adult supportive braces are typically worn for shorter, activity-based windows, during work, exercise, or longer outings. We map out a realistic wear schedule together.
Do I still need chiropractic adjustments while braced?
Many patients combine bracing with chiropractic adjustments to keep the surrounding joints mobile and the supporting muscles balanced. The brace stabilizes, adjustments help the rest of the spine adapt. Both are scheduled around your wear plan.
Will insurance cover scoliosis bracing?
Coverage varies. Some plans cover medically necessary bracing for adolescents with a documented Cobb angle threshold. HSA and FSA funds are widely accepted. We're transparent about cost up front and help you understand your options. See payment options →
What kind of outcomes can I realistically expect?
Evidence suggests bracing may help slow curve progression in adolescents who are still growing, and may help with posture and pain in adults. Outcomes depend on age, curve magnitude, wear compliance, and overall health. We don't promise miracles, we map a realistic plan and track progress at scheduled re-evaluations.
Do you accept second-opinion consultations?
Absolutely. If you've been told you need a brace, or already have one and want a fresh master-trained look at the plan, we're happy to review your imaging and exam findings. Reach out →
The problem with the "watch and wait" approach.
Most families with a scoliosis diagnosis hear some version of the same line: "Let's keep an eye on it, come back in six months." For a small, non-progressive curve in an adult who has finished growing, that monitoring approach can be fine. For an adolescent in the middle of a growth spurt with a Cobb angle climbing past 20 degrees, "watch and wait" is the gap where curves quietly progress past the bracing window and into the surgical conversation. Once a curve crosses roughly 40 to 50 degrees in a skeletally mature patient, the typical recommendation shifts to spinal fusion. Fusion is a real tool with a real place, but it permanently locks segments of the spine and changes how the patient moves for the rest of their life.
The window where bracing can do the most good (adolescents with curves in the 20 to 40 degree range who are still growing) is also the window most often spent waiting for the next imaging appointment. The Bracing in Adolescent Idiopathic Scoliosis Trial (BrAIST), published in The New England Journal of Medicine in 2013, found that bracing significantly reduced the risk of curve progression to the surgical threshold compared to observation alone. The benefit was strongest in patients who wore the brace consistently. The clinical evidence has been clear for over a decade. Most families have just never been offered the option in their own town.
We exist to close that gap. Not by promising any specific outcome. By giving families a real conservative path, run by a doctor who is actually trained and authorized to fit the braces in question.
A brace only works if it fits the patient. Most do not.
The dirty secret of scoliosis bracing is that the brace itself is often the easy part. The hard part is the fit, the wear schedule, and the co-management around it. The reasons bracing programs fail look the same across the country.
- Off-the-shelf bracing. Generic, pre-formed braces sold in a small range of sizes cannot match the specific rotation, asymmetry, and apex of an individual curve. A brace that does not match the curve cannot correct it.
- Travel-and-mail fitting. Many families are referred out of state to a fitter, scanned once, and shipped a brace from a manufacturer they never meet. Follow-up adjustments happen by phone. When the patient grows or the curve shifts, response time is measured in weeks.
- No co-management. A brace stabilizes the spine. It does not address the muscle imbalance, the postural compensation, or the joint stiffness building above and below the brace. Without chiropractic co-management, the spine outside the brace keeps adapting to the curve.
- Wear-time compliance. Adolescent rigid braces are typically prescribed for 16 to 23 hours per day during peak growth. A brace that is uncomfortable, ugly, or unworkable at school comes off and stays off. Compliance is the single biggest predictor of bracing outcomes.
- Adult curves treated as adolescent curves. Adult degenerative scoliosis is a different problem than adolescent idiopathic scoliosis. It needs a different bracing approach, usually lower-profile, activity-based, and paired with pain management.
We address each of these directly. Custom Spinal Technology braces fit in-office. Same-week adjustments when something is not right. Chiropractic adjustments and supporting therapies on the same hallway. Honest wear-time conversations with the patient and the family. Adult and adolescent protocols treated as the separate problems they are.
A scoliosis program that does not end at the brace.
Most clinics that "do scoliosis" do one thing: they fit a brace, hand the family a wear schedule, and see them again at the next imaging interval. That model leaves a lot on the table. We built our scoliosis program around a different assumption, that the brace is one tool in a coordinated program, not the whole program.
In the same hallway as the brace fitting room, you have chiropractic adjustments with Dr. Banman to address the postural and joint changes that travel with a scoliotic spine, decompression and disc-focused care for patients whose scoliosis sits alongside degenerative disc disease, Class IV laser and supporting therapies for the soft tissue when the case calls for them, and regenerative medicine consultation for adult cases where degenerative changes are driving symptoms beyond what bracing alone addresses.
- Dr. Mike personally measures, prescribes, fits, and adjusts. Not a tech in another building. Not a phone-tag relationship with an out-of-state orthotist.
- Honest candidacy answers. We say "no, this curve does not need a brace" when that is the right call, and we say it on Day 1.
- Bilingual care. The clinic operates in English and Spanish so families across Lakewood Ranch, Bradenton, Sarasota, and Parrish can navigate a scoliosis diagnosis without a language barrier.
- Cash-pay clarity. Coverage for bracing varies by plan. We tell you what is covered, what is not, and what the realistic out-of-pocket looks like before any brace is ordered. HSA and FSA funds are accepted.
Day 1 is a curve assessment. Not a sales pitch.
The biggest hesitation we hear from families is reasonable: "I do not want to drive forty minutes just to be told to come back next week." Day 1 is built specifically so that does not happen.
You meet Dr. Banman. He runs a postural exam, an Adam's forward bend test, a scoliometer reading, and reviews any imaging you bring with you. If you do not have a recent standing scoliosis X-ray, he tells you that on Day 1 and orders one. Cobb angle measurement happens on imaging, not by eye.
At the end of the visit, you get an honest answer in one of three categories.
- Brace candidate. Dr. Banman explains why, which Spinal Technology brace fits the curve pattern, and the realistic wear-time conversation. Investment is presented on Day 2 after the exam. You take the plan home. You decide on your own time.
- Monitor closely. The curve is real but does not currently meet the bracing threshold, or the patient is past the window where bracing is the right tool. We schedule the next imaging interval and the next assessment.
- Refer. Some curves are surgical candidates from Day 1. Some are best co-managed with a specific orthopedic surgeon or pediatric specialist. When that is the right call, we say so and make the connection.
There is no obligation past Day 1.
Find out if scoliosis bracing fits your spine.
The fastest path is a quick call. We'll answer your questions, review your imaging if you have any, and get you booked with Dr. Banman.