Evaluation of Spine Health and Spine Mechanics in Servicemembers with Traumatic Lower Extremity Amputation or Injury
Abstract
Low back pain (LBP) is an important secondary health condition following lower-extremity trauma, with an estimated prevalence as high as 52-89 percent, and reported as the condition most contributing to a reduced quality of life. During gait and activities of daily living, alterations in trunk motion following lower-extremity trauma likely impose distinct demands on trunk muscles to maintain equilibrium and stability of the spine that, with repeated exposure, may increase risk for LBP. The overall objective of this research was to characterize features of trunk (spine) motion with lower-extremity trauma, thereby elucidating the relationship(s) between trunk motion and LBP risk via changes in spine mechanics and spine health. Using a novel set of clinical, experimental, and computational methods, we have demonstrated that altered trunk motions with lower-extremity trauma increase spinal loads by 17-95 percent relative to uninjured individuals. Moreover, poor spine health/history of LBP was also related to greater self-reported functional limitations, and further moderated by psychosocial factors, thereby highlighting the interdependence of biopsychosocial factors in musculoskeletal pain following limb loss. Nevertheless, the positive association between elevated spinal loads and LBP support the need for trunk-specific rehabilitation procedures to reduce long-term incidence and recurrence of LBP.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 30, 2019
- Accession Number
- AD1095126
Entities
People
- Bradford D. Hendershot
Organizations
- Henry M. Jackson Foundation for the Advancement of Military Medicine