Richard III's Scoliosis Revisited:: A Comment on the Reliability of Historical Sources

Idiopathic scoliosis (IS) is in the spotlight of sports medicine research due to its high prevalence in athletes, and although it is still unknown what sport causes its highest prevalence, a cause-and-effect relationship between this spinal change and sports activity has been cautiously postulated.1 IS has a long historical record: King Richard III (1452–1485) can be counted among its most famous ancient “patients,” as he has been described as being affected by adolescent-onset IS, a condition that likely emerged after he turned 10 without causing him to limp or preventing him from engaging in physical activities. Notably, Richard III was killed at the Battle of Bosworth (August 22, 1485).2 Such pathological notions have become popular after Appleby et al2 presented in 2014 the monarch’s excavated skeleton.