2015 Volume 30 Issue 4 Pages 605-608
[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to clarify the relationship between stiffness of the lumbar muscles and body flexibility for care prevention. [Subjects and Methods] The subjects were 28 healthy elderly adults (4 men, 24 women) aged ≥65 years. The stiffness of the lumbar muscles was measured in the longissimus thoracis section. Body flexibility was measured as the distance between the tips of the middle fingers of both hands with the hands held diagonally opposite behind the back (middle finger-middle finger distance [MMD]) and forward reach in the long sitting position, and the values were compared. The relationships of lumbar muscle stiffness with body flexibility and among the body flexibility measurements were analyzed using Pearson correlation coefficients. [Results] The MMD did not differ significantly between the positions of the right and left hands uppermost. However, there was a significant correlation between MMD with the right hand uppermost and forward reach in the long sitting position. Significant relationships were not found for the other measurements. [Conclusion] The results suggest there is no relationship between the stiffness of the lumbar muscles and body flexibility.
