Relationship between Upper Body Posture Angle and Vertebral Body Posture Angle in Lateral Flexion and Rotation Posture

Abstract

Lumbar loading causes increased intervertebral pressure and is an important factor in low back pain. However, it is difficult to quantitatively judge the actions that affect lumbar load and the magnitude of lumbar load increase. Low back pain occurs not only in the workplace but also during activities of daily living. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the factors inducing low back pain by measuring movements in various planes and determining the magnitude of the lumbar load. Accordingly, the lumbar spine should be examined during various movements. Several studies have examined vertebral bodies in the anteflexion posture. However, the relationship between body flexion angle and vertebral body angle during lateral flexion and rotation remains unknown. In this study, we proposed an estimation method for changes in vertebral body angle during lateral flexion and rotation in the lumbosacral region using a wearable sensor system we previously developed. The accuracy of the proposed estimation method was evaluated and demonstrated using X-ray images.