Expert: Dr. Paul Newhart - 1/14/2008

Question
Hi there, I am a 33 year old female with an extra set of cervical ribs/one is malformed on my left side and comes up from the clavicle. I have been diagnosed with TOS due to this.
I have 3 daughters. The oldest 8, and 5 year old twins. Our 8 year old is a gymnast, and we have noticed she cannot align her arms over her head straight. She has a bend to her right arm, and it does not align with the left. We are wondering if the extra ribs could be hereditary, or other bone inconsistencies. Should we take her to an initial chiro for a consult, or instead try to teach muslce memory to correct the arms issue?
Thank you in advance.

Answer
It wouldn't hurt to have her evaluated by a good chiropractor.  He can asses if there may be any problems underlying, given her activities, that may be causing the arm issue.  An X-ray would be most definitive for diagnosing cervical ribs, which could possibly have been inherited.