Lumbar lordosis in osteoporosis and in osteoarthritis

Abstract

The curvature of the lumbar spine and the risk of developing either osteoporosis (OP) or osteoarthritis (OA) are influenced by many common factors. The aim of this study is to determine whether lumbar lordosis is different between patients with either disease and healthy persons. A crosssectional, blinded, controlled design was implemented. One hundred and twelve postmenopausal women were evaluated for bone mineral density as well as undergoing spinal radiography. Lordosis measurement was performed with Cobb's method. The sample was divided in four groups: patients with OP (n = 34, L1-L5 = 40.7°, L1-S1 = 54.1°), patients with OA (n = 29, L1-L5 = 38°, L1-S1 = 52.3°), patients with both diseases (n = 20, L1-L5 = 41.8°, L1-S1 = 52.3°) and controls (n = 29, L1-L5 = 38.6°, L1-S1 = 51.8°). For all participants age, height, weight, body mass index, physical activity level and basal metabolic rate were measured and recorded. The results revealed that although the four groups have significant constitutional differences, lumbar lordosis was comparable between them. The reasons for the lack of association are discussed.

Postmenopausal women with osteoarthritis and osteoporosis show different ultrastructural characteristics of trabecular bone of the femoral head

“…The higher bone quantity and better mechanical quality could partly explain why femoral neck fractures were so rare in those people with OA [ 32 ]. However, Papadakis M et al [ 33 ] observed that the degree of lumbar lordosis was not associated with the presence of OA or OP. The reasons for the lack of difference may be due to, we believe, the size of sample, the criteria of subgroup, and the age of the patients.…”

The Effect of Neck Flexion on Measurement of Spinal Bone Mineral Density and the Need to Apply Head Positioners During Dual-Energy X-Ray Absorptiometry

“…Lordosis, another condition that may complicate interpretation of spine densitometry results, may be even more important because osteoporosis and spinal deformities (lordosis and scoliosis) are interrelated. A higher prevalence of spinal deformities has been demonstrated in osteoporosis patients than in individuals without osteoporosis (10,11). In patients who have varying degrees of lordosis, the lumbar vertebrae do not lie horizontally on the scanning table (i.e., each is not equally distant from the xray source and detector), even after a positioner is placed beneath the legs.…”