Applied Sciences (Jul 2022)

Abdominal Adiposity Increases Lordosis and Doubles the Risk of Low Back Pain

  • Rebeca Saludes,
  • Paula Acevedo,
  • Ignacio Zaragoza García,
  • Álvaro Gómez Carrión,
  • Carlos Martínez Sebastián,
  • Almudena Núñez Fernández,
  • Isabel Seco-Armell,
  • Rubén Sánchez-Gómez

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3390/app12157616
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 12, no. 15
p. 7616

Abstract

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Vertebral disorders have significant health and economic impacts, and due to aging and current lifestyle habits, there is a trend toward their increase. Obesity and the alignment of vertebral curvatures can be associated with back pain. Objective: This study aims to analyze whether general and abdominal obesity are associated with cervical, dorsal, and lumbar vertebral pain as well as increased or decreased values of cervical, dorsal, and lumbar vertebral curvatures. Methodology: Body composition, degree of vertebral curvature, and the perception of cervical, dorsal, and lumbar pain were evaluated in a study population of 301 people (>18 years old). Linear and logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate the influence of several variables of body composition on vertebral angles and cervical, dorsal, and lumbar pain. Results: Lumbar pain was the most prevalent (66.1%), mainly affecting women (70.9%). They were also shown to have greater lumbar angles (p p p p Conclusions: This study shows that increased lumbar curvature and abdominal obesity may be risk factors for lower back pain. In addition, it shows an association between the amount of body and abdominal fat in relation to the degree of curvature of the spine in the sagittal plane. Investigating the effect of obesity on vertebral morphology and musculoskeletal disorders makes it possible to prescribe interventions and therapeutic strategies.

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