A photographic method for multi-plane assessment of adolescent posture

To date there have been no photographic methods reported for assessing the standing postural alignment in a manner that can be used in large scale populations. The purpose of this study was to describe a photographic, multi-plane postural measurement method in a pilot group of subjects in a school setting. A total of 83 healthy male adolescents, volunteered for the study, were photographed. The mean age was 14.5 +/- 0.7 years (range 14-16). The mean height was 170.7 +/- 3.5 cm, (range 155-187), and the mean weight was 63.2 +/- 13.9 kg (range 37-110). During procedure, subjects stood on a platform, with specific markers placed on landmarks that could be identified photographically. Photography was accomplished from above, below, each side, and front and back. These six photographs permit views to be projected onto the six sides of an ideal parallelepiped enclosing the body. Five angles were calculated and reported to describe the alignments of the head, shoulders, torso, and pelvis. As expected the means of each of the five angles were small, the absolute value varying from 0 to 7 degrees. This paper describes the results of a simple, practical, and effective way to gather data concerning standing postural alignment in adolescents using a photographic technique. This technique will be used to form a normative database by large-scale studies. Using this approach, a number of angles can be calculated and eventually models can be developed, relating these angles to sitting posture measurements and to symptoms.