Spinal posture during stooped walking under vertical space constraints

Simultaneous spine kinematic variables in sewage workers were quantified using a two-dimensional video-based gait analysis system.

To identify patterns of spinal posture in a population of sewage workers pushing waste matter through tunnels while walking stooped under various height constraints.

Working with stooped postures is one of several occupational risk factors that have been associated with spinal disorders. However, the specific changes in spinal posture during stooped walking under various height constraints have not been documented.

A video-based gait analysis system was used to measure spinal posture in 22 sewage workers. Angles of the cervical, thoracic, and lumbar spine in the sagittal plane were assessed during walking with five levels of height constraint, from upright walking to stooped walking under a headroom restriction of 105 cm. Correlations among gait parameters, demographic data, and clinical results were determined. Linear regression analysis was performed to examine which variables have the largest impact on the posture resulting from a given vertical height constraint when age and body height are held constant.

Mean angular values changed significantly with increasing headroom restrictions, with increases in cervical and thoracic extension as well as lumbar flexion. The cervical and thoracic angles were best correlated with height constraint, followed by lumbar angle and stride length. The inverse relation between cervical and thoracic angle during upright walking increased with increasing vertical space constraints, whereas the relation between the thoracic and lumbar angles decreased. Subjects with decreased abdominal muscle strength adopted a significantly more kyphotic thoracic posture when walking under headroom constraints than subjects with normal abdominal muscle strength.

Combined walking and pushing under vertical space constraints was associated not only with the expected increased flexion of the lumbar spine, but also with greater extension (i.e., reduced kyphosis) of the thoracic spine.