Lumbar vertebral morphology and isthmic spondylolysis in a British medieval population

The British medieval population from Wharram Percy, England, has a greater prevalence of isthmic spondylolysis (11.9% of skeletons, 8.5% at the L5 level) than in modern populations (3%-6%). This may in part be due to differences in activity patterns between groups. However, Ward and Latimer (Spine 30 [2005] 1808-1814) proposed that the likelihood of developing and maintaining spondylolytic defects is also influenced by a lack of sufficient increase in mediolateral separation between articular processes in the lowest lumbar segments, given the human lumbar lordosis. Here, we demonstrate that spondylolytic individuals from Wharram Percy tend to have a less pronounced difference between mediolateral facet joint spacing of adjacent segments in the lowest lumbar region than do unaffected individuals, as seen in modern clinical and skeletal populations. These comparisons suggest that regardless of lifestyle, insufficient mediolateral increase in facet spacing predisposes people to spondylolytic defects, and so interfacet spacing patterns may have predictive utility in a clinical context. We also compare the Wharram Percy sample to a modern sample from the Hamann Todd collection with a typically modern prevalence rate. Data do not support the hypothesis that the Wharram Percy individuals had a less pronounced interfacet increase than the Hamann Todd, although they do have narrower lumbar facet spacing at the lowest three levels. Further investigation of anatomical variation underlying population-specific prevalence rates needs to be conducted.