Quantification of Lumbar Lordosis by Tactile and Non Tactile Methods: A Revisit

Abstract

Lumbar lordosis alteration results in various disabilities and common problems like low back pain, among others which severely impacts the quality of life of a person. This paper focuses on postural evaluation used to identify this alteration, which till date has received little attention even though it is an important outcome measure in various experimental studies. This review focuses on both quantitative and qualitative postural evaluation methods. Conventional methods range from visual observation method to the gold standard method, namely, radiography and various other non invasive methods like photogrammetric, flexicurve, spinal mouse, and inclinometer. However, recent research suggests some 3 Dimensional (3D) analysis methods like 3D radiographs, inertial sensors and posturometer. There is a lack of consensus on the most suitable method for this evaluation, hence, the selection is difficult for clinical as well as research purposes. Although there are few reviews available, none of them have attempted to establish the pros and cons of all these methods. This review provides a comprehensive overview of different 2D, 3D, tactile and non tactile methods or tools that have been developed to measure posture or shape of lumbar spine. This review will also provide practical recommendations to researchers as well as clinicians about the tool selection for lumbar lordosis assessment.

Keywords

• cobb’s angle
• inclinometer
• lumbar spine
• photogrammetry
• posture
• posturometer