Idk whether braces are absolutely neccesary, it is depending on the angle of the curve. I'm sixteen this year, i got 3 degrees left. So the visiting docs that come to school every year, they just said take care of your posture, be conscientious about it, don't slouch, sit upright, and it'll stabilize or shift back, cause for us, the spine haven't finish growing, so it's easier to bend out of place. That's what i heard, at least. Oh, by the way, my friend has about 5-7 degrees, they recommended him for checkup but brace wasn't neccesary yet.