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Posture Analysis in Patients with Spinal Osteoporosis

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Non-Pharmacological Management of Osteoporosis

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Abstract

Posture assessment is very important because certain postural changes are known to be associated with instability in the standing position, risk of fall, and clinical symptoms such as back pain and low back pain. There are various methods to evaluate the posture, but posture assessment using X-rays is still the gold standard because it allows the visualization of not only the spinal curvature but also the shape of each vertebral body. This is especially useful when evaluating the osteoporotic patients with a high risk of vertebral fractures. However, there are several limitations of X-ray measurement such as radiation exposure, cost, and availability. Due to these limitations, non-radiographic methods have become more and more popular these days. Among various methods of assessing the spinal curvature, the Debrunner kyphometer, SpinalMouse, and flexicurve kyphosis index show high reliability, whereas flexicurve kyphosis index and arcometer show high validity. It is likely that these methods would replace the X-ray measurement for mass screening and epidemiological studies, where devices that are handy, cost-effective, noninvasive, and validated are required.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Orthopaedic Surgery, Tohoku University School of Medicine, 1-1 Seiryo-machi, Aoba-ku, Sendai, Miyagi, 980-8574, Japan

    Eiji Itoi MD, PhD & Yu Mori MD, PhD

Authors
  1. Eiji Itoi MD, PhD
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  2. Yu Mori MD, PhD
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Correspondence to Eiji Itoi MD, PhD .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, Minnesota, USA

    Mehrsheed Sinaki

  2. Institute of Clinical Osteology and Clinic “DER FÜRSTENHOF”, German Osteology Foundation, Bad Pyrmont, Niedersachsen, Germany

    Michael Pfeifer

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Itoi, E., Mori, Y. (2017). Posture Analysis in Patients with Spinal Osteoporosis. In: Sinaki, M., Pfeifer, M. (eds) Non-Pharmacological Management of Osteoporosis. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54016-0_3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-54016-0_3

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-54014-6

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-54016-0

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