Article

Spinal deformities reportedly affect postural instability or falls. To prevent
falls in clinical settings, the determination of a cut-off angle of spinal
sagittal contour associated with increase risk for falls would be useful for
screening for high-risk fallers. The purpose of this study was to calculate the
spinal sagittal contour angle associated with increased risk for falls during
medical checkups in community dwelling elders. The subjects comprised 213
patients (57 men, 156 women) with a mean age of 70.1 years (range, 55-85 years).
The upright and flexion/extension thoracic kyphosis and lumbar lordosis angles,
and the spinal inclination were evaluated with SpinalMouse((R)). Postural
instability was evaluated by stabilometry, using the total track length (LNG),
enveloped areas (ENV), and track lengths in the lateral and anteroposterior
directions (X LNG and Y LNG, respectively). The back extensor strength (BES) was
measured using a strain-gauge dynamometer. The relationships among the parameters
were analyzed statistically. Age, lumbar lordosis, spinal inclination, LNG, X
LNG, Y LNG, and BES were significantly associated with falls (P<0.05).
Multivariate logistic regression analyses revealed that lumbar lordosis was the
most significant factor (P<0.01). Univariate logistic regression analyses for
falls about lumbar lordosis angles revealed that angles of
3 degrees and less
were significant for falls.
The present findings suggest that increased age,
spinal inclination, LNG, X LNG,
Y LNG, and decreased BES and lumbar lordosis, are
associated with falls. An angle of lumbar lordosis of 3 degrees or less was associated with falls in these community-dwelling elders.
CI - Copyright (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Langue : ANGLAIS