Effect of Back-Strengthening Exercise on Posture in Healthy Women 49 to 65 Years of Age

doi:10.1016/S0025-6196(12)61372-X

Mayo Clinic Proceedings

Volume 69, Issue 11, November 1994, Pages 1054-1059

https://doi.org/10.1016/S0025-6196(12)61372-X Get rights and content

Objective

To evaluate the effect of back-strengthening exercise on posture in 60 healthy estrogen-deficient women.

Design

The 60 study subjects were randomly assigned to either an exercise or a control group, and various factors were assessed at time of enrollment in the study and at 2-year follow-up.

Material and Methods

The 32 women in the exercise group were instructed in progressive back-strengthening exercises, whereas the 28 women in the control group had no exercise prescription and were asked to continue their usual physical and dietary activities. At baseline and 2-year follow-up examinations, back extensor strength was measured with a strain-gauge dynamometer, and lateral roentgenograms of the thoracic and lumbar areas of the spine were obtained to measure the angles of thoracic kyphosis, lumbar lordosis, and sacral inclination. The changes in radiographic measurements and back extensor strength were analyzed statistically.

Results

Back extensor strength increased significantly in both the exercise and the control groups, but no radiographic measurements were significantly different between these groups. The significant increase in back extensor strength in both groups of healthy women suggested that the original grouping did not accurately reflect the amount of exercise. Thus, the 60 subjects were reclassified for comparison on the basis of increase in back extensor strength—27 with more than or equal to the mean increase of 21.1 kg and 33 with less than 21.1 kg. Furthermore, each of these groups of subjects was subdivided on the basis of degree of thoracic kyphosis. Among the subjects with substantial thoracic kyphosis, those with a significant increase in back extensor strength had a significant decrease in thoracic kyphosis (−2.8 ± 4.2°; P = 0.041), whereas those with a small increase in strength had a nonsignificant increase in thoracic kyphosis (1.8 ± 5.3°). The increase in back extensor strength did not seem to affect mild degrees of kyphosis.

Conclusion

Increasing the back extensor strength in healthy estrogen-deficient women helps decrease thoracic kyphosis.

Section snippets

Inclusion Criteria for Study Subjects.

Sixty healthy, white, estrogen-deficient, nonsmoking women with no underlying diseases that might affect bone metabolism or muscle strength were enrolled in this study. The mean age of the subjects was 59 years (range, 49 to 65). All subjects had to be at least 6 months postmenopausal to qualify for entry into the study. All subjects had normal results of the following studies or determinations: electrocardiography, complete blood cell count, urinalysis, serum creatine kinase, calcium,

RESULTS

One subject in the control group and one subject in the exercise group had a wedge-shaped compression deformity (ratio of the anterior height to the posterior height of the vertebral body was less than 0.8) of the thoracic spine (T-6 and T-7, respectively) when this study was initiated. At follow-up examination 2 years later, these two subjects had no change in the deformity of the vertebral bodies. In one subject in each group, a new deformity (T-7, control group; T-10, exercise group)

DISCUSSION

This study initially compared an exercise group and a control group of postmenopausal women to determine the effect of exercise. Contrary to our expectation, however, the effect of exercise on thoracic kyphosis could not be observed. On analysis of the data, both the exercise group and the control group had a significant increase in back extensor strength. Although the subjects in the control group were asked to avoid any type of back-strengthening exercises or change in their activities, some

CONCLUSION

We conclude that the decrease in thoracic kyphosis in our hyperkyphotic estrogen-deficient study subjects was related to an increment in back extensor strength because not all subjects in the exercise group had improvement in their back extensor strength after a 2-year study.

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: This study was supported in part by grants from the Retirement Research Foundation and Mayo Foundation.

^*: Current address: Akita University School of Medicine, Akita, Japan.

View full text

Effect of Back-Strengthening Exercise on Posture in Healthy Women 49 to 65 Years of Age

Objective

Design

Material and Methods

Results

Conclusion

Section snippets

Inclusion Criteria for Study Subjects.

RESULTS

DISCUSSION

CONCLUSION

Clin Endocrinol Metab

Prev Med

Mayo Clin Proc

Mayo Clin Proc

Long-term observations on aged women with pathologic osteoporosis: including a comment on the significance of the dowager's hump

Osteoporosis of the aged spine

Clin Orthop

Fractures of the spine in the aged

Clin Orthop

Age effects in kyphosis and lordosis in adults

Ann Hum Biol

Physical activity in postmenopausal women: effect on back muscle strength and bone mineral density of the spine

Arch Phys Med Rehabil