IN JAMAICA: Son jeered because of unwell mother...... 29-year-old, Rosemarie Abrahams tries to fight life’s struggles despite challenges....kyphosis are the appearance of poor posture with a hump appearance of the back or "hunchback, back pain, muscle fatigue, and stiffness in the back.

BY DONNA HUSSEY-WHYTE Sunday Observer staff reporter husseyd@jamaicaobserver.com

SEVEN years ago, Rosemarie Abrahams was a happy, working class young woman who would play football with her son, take him on walks and enjoying the moments skipping and jumping with him.

But all that has changed after she fell and hit her back, resulting in what was diagnosed as kyphosis.

Rosemarie Abrahams (right) is being supported
by her niece Christine Allison as she walks
in Old Harbour town on Thursday

Kyphosis, also called roundback, is a condition of over-curvature of the upper back. It can be either the result of degenerative diseases, developmental problems, osteoporosis with compression fractures of the vertebrae, or trauma, as in Abrahams's case.

The most common symptoms for people with kyphosis are the appearance of poor posture with a hump appearance of the back or "hunchback, back pain, muscle fatigue, and stiffness in the back. Most often, these symptoms remain fairly constant. In more severe situations, the patient may notice their symptoms worsening with time. The kyphosis can progress, causing a more exaggerated hunchback. In rare cases, this can lead to compression of the spinal cord with neurologic symptoms including weakness, loss of sensation, or loss of bowel and bladder control. In severe cases it can limit the amount of space in the chest and cause cardiac and pulmonary problems, leading to chest pain or shortness of breath with eventual pulmonary and/or heart failure.

Abrahams, 29, explained how her condition started.

"One day my mother was outside sitting on a bucket but she couldn't get up. She has arthritis," she explained to the Jamaica Observer. "She called me and when I went around there she asked me to help her up. Normally I would hold her hand by the wrist or her palm to raise her up. But this time I had to go behind her and put my hands underneath her arms and hug her around the chest. So when I raised her up, her knees gave way and she fell on me and I fell and hit my back on a rock that was there."

She said that she immediately felt her spine slip and knew something was drastically wrong. After complaining to her mom, she was told that she was okay and that she complained too much. more