This study compared the baroreflex control of lumbar and renal sympathetic nerve activity (SNA) in conscious rats. Arterial pressure (AP) and lumbar and renal SNA were simultaneously recorded in six freely behaving rats. Pharmacological estimates of lumbar and renal sympathetic baroreflex sensitivity (BRS) were obtained by means of the sequential intravenous administration of sodium nitroprussi...

OBJECTIVES To investigate the effects of backward adjustable thoracic support on spinal curvature and back muscle activation during wheelchair sitting. METHODS Twenty elderly people were recruited for this study. The backward adjustable thoracic support sitting posture was compared with the slumped, normal, and lumbar support sitting postures. Spinal curvatures (pelvic, lumbar, and thoracic a...

BACKGROUND Lumbar puncture for spinal or epidural anesthesia is commonly performed by palpating bony landmarks, but identification of the desired intervertebral level is often inaccurate. It is unclear whether such inaccuracy is related to patient factors, such as body mass index and degree of lumbar flexion. We hypothesized that overweight patients and patients with less of an ability to hyper...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The degree of lumbar lordosis and reduced lumbar mobility are regarded as important clinical features in patients with low back pain, and in lumbar disc herniation A more stiff back preoperatively in a proportion of patients has been shown to be associated with sequestered disc herniation. The main aim of this study was to investigate whether there was any correlation bet...

Paraspinal muscles are commonly affected during spine surgery. The purpose of this study was to assess the potential factors that contribute to paraspinal muscle atrophy (PMA) after lumbar spine surgery. A comprehensive review of the available English literature, including relevant abstracts and references of articles selected for review, was conducted to identify studies that reported PMA afte...

[Purpose] This study compared the upper and lower lumbar angles of normal body mass index and overweight young adults, and examined the relationships among body mass index, waist circumferences, and lumbar angles. [Subjects and Methods] Sixty participants aged 18-25 years were recruited and allocated to 2 groups (n=30 per group): normal body mass index (18.5-24.9 kg/m(2)) and overweight group (...

Summary There is an abundance of published literature discussing the treatment of single-level lumbar spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis. However, the treatment of patients with chronic back pain and multiple levels of combined lumbar spondylolysis and spondylolisthesis are not well-described in the existing literature. Introduction The purpose of this case report is to review the literature a...

BACKGROUND Muscle morphology, age and gender may be determinants of muscle strength in older adults. However, very few research studies have directly examined such correlation in the ageing spine. The aim of the study was to examine the correlation between lumbar extensor muscle strength, its muscle fibre angles, thoracolumbar curvature, age and gender in the older and younger adults. METHODS...

CONTEXT Isolated lumbar paraspinal muscle fatigue causes lower extremity and postural control deficits. OBJECTIVE To describe the change in body position during gait after fatiguing lumbar extension exercises in persons with recurrent episodes of low back pain compared with healthy controls. DESIGN Case-control study. SETTING Motion analysis laboratory. PATIENTS OR OTHER PARTICIPANTS Tw...

OBJECTIVE To determine the clinical effects of the treatment of lumbar disc herniation with herbal magnetic corsets. DESIGN A randomized control trial. SETTING The outpatient and inpatient departments of the Rehabilitation Center of the West China Hospital. PATIENTS Sixty patients with clinically diagnosed lumbar disc herniation were included in the study. INTERVENTIONS Both groups rece...