Activity of Erector Spinae During Trunk Forward Bending and Backward Return: The Effects of Age

Details

• Personal Author:
  Bazrgari B ; Shojaei I
• Description:
  Electromyography (EMG)-based measures of the trunk muscles behavior have been used for objective assessment of biomechanical impairments in patients with low back pain (LBP); yet the literature on normal age-related differences in such measures is scant. A cross-sectional study was designed to assess age-related differences in activity of trunk extensors during forward bending and backward return. Sixty asymptomatic individuals were recruited to form five gender-balanced age groups between 20 and 70 years old. Participants completed two sets of trunk forward bending and backward return task using self-selected and fast motion paces. For bending and return phases of each task, the normalized lumbar flexion angles corresponding to different event times of erector spinae activity along with the peak normalized and non-normalized EMG activities of erector spinae were calculated. The mean normalized and non-normalized EMG activities of erector spinae during the entire task also were calculated. There was no age-related difference in normalized lumbar flexion angles corresponding to different event times of erector spinae activity. However, the peak normalized EMG activity during forward bending and backward return as well as the mean normalized EMG activity during the entire task were found to be larger in older vs. younger individuals. Given the suggested unreliability of normalized EMG in elders and considering that we did not find any age-related differences in non-normalized EMG activity of erector spinae, our results do not strongly support the existence of normal age-related differences in EMG profile of erector spinae during forward bending and backward return. Therefore, when interpreting EMG-based measures of trunk muscles behavior for identification of biomechanical impairment in patients with LBP, potential abnormalities in EMG activity of trunk muscles may not be attributed to patient's age. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Aerosols Engineering Mining Occupational Health Particulate Matter Safety Vehicle Emissions
• Keywords:
  Age Factors Author Keywords: Aging Back Injuries Biomechanics Electromyography Erector Spinae Gender Gender Factors Kinesiology Low Back Disorders Low Back Pain MSD Muscle Function Musculoskeletal Disorders Neuromuscular Function Sex Factors Task Pace Trunk Forward Bending And Backward Return

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• ISSN:
  0090-6964
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Kentucky ; OSHA Region 4
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  45
• Issue:
  6
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20053559
• Citation:
  Ann Biomed Eng 2017 Jun; 45(6):1511-1519
• Contact Point Address:
  Babak Bazrgari, F. Joseph Halcomb III, M.D. Department of Biomedical Engineering, University of Kentucky, Lexington, USA
• Email:
  babak.bazrgari@uky.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2017
• Performing Organization:
  University of Kentucky
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20120701
• Source Full Name:
  Annals of Biomedical Engineering
• End Date:
  20150630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:c6a26f6ea3119503007ca34ee1616b902c025e05927b903d261d2009ade1add082b7990a0966d3b49785c1d53bb565b26323f8883123c725b73b774b5b1c59d4
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/216290/cdc_216290_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 1.06 MB ]