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Sagittal spino-pelvic alignment in chronic low back pain
Emmanuelle Chaléat-Valayer1, Jean-Marc Mac-Thiong, Jérôme Paquet
1Médecine Physique et Réadaptation, Hôpital de Jour, Centre médico-chirurgical de réadaptation des Massues, 92 Rue Edmond Locard, 69322, Lyon cedex 05, France. chaleat-valayer.e@cmcr-massues.com
Adults with chronic low back pain (LBP) often exhibit distinct sagittal spino-pelvic alignment patterns, including low sacral slope (SS) and lumbar lordosis (LL) with small pelvic incidence (PI). These findings suggest a link between specific spinal alignment and LBP.
Area of Science:
- Orthopedics and Spine Surgery
- Biomechanical Analysis
- Pain Management
Background:
- Sagittal spino-pelvic alignment differences in chronic low back pain (LBP) are not well understood.
- Specific alignment patterns associated with chronic LBP remain unclear.
- This study investigates the relationship between sagittal alignment and LBP.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare sagittal spino-pelvic alignment between adults with chronic LBP and asymptomatic individuals.
- To identify specific alignment patterns prevalent in chronic LBP patients.
Main Methods:
- Prospective cohort study comparing 198 chronic LBP patients and 709 asymptomatic adults.
- Evaluation of key sagittal parameters: sacral slope (SS), pelvic tilt (PT), pelvic incidence (PI), lumbar lordosis (LL), lumbar tilt (LT), thoracic kyphosis (TK), and others.
- Statistical comparison of alignment parameters and assessment of correlations.
Main Results:
- Significant differences in SS, PI, LT, lordotic levels, TK, TT, and LSA between chronic LBP patients and controls.
- Chronic LBP patients showed a higher prevalence of low SS and LL with small PI.
- Asymptomatic individuals more frequently presented normal or high SS with normal or high PI.
Conclusions:
- Sagittal spino-pelvic alignment differs significantly between chronic LBP patients and controls.
- A pattern of low SS, low LL, and small PI is more common in chronic LBP.
- This specific alignment pattern may be associated with the presence of chronic LBP.
