Comparison of lumbar muscle morphology in patients with chronic nonspecific low back pain with and without clinical lumbar segmental instability

• Published in: PloS one 2024-04, Vol.19 (4), p.e0301726-e0301726
• Main Authors: Mahmoudi Alami, Faranak, Taghipour, Mohammad, Talebi, Ghadamali, Sa'adat, Payam, Seyedhoseinpoor, Tahere, Rad, Hamid Vahidi, Khafri, Sorayya
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Back; Biology and Life Sciences; Case-Control Studies; Comparative analysis; Development and progression; Humans; Joint Instability - diagnostic imaging; Low back pain; Low Back Pain - diagnostic imaging; Low Back Pain - pathology; Lumbar Vertebrae - diagnostic imaging; Lumbar Vertebrae - pathology; Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Medical research; Medicine and Health Sciences; Medicine, Experimental; Methods; Morphology; Muscles; Muscular Atrophy - pathology; Paraspinal Muscles - anatomy & histology; Research and Analysis Methods; Spinal Diseases - pathology
• ISSN: 1932-6203; 1932-6203
• DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0301726

Evaluation of spinal muscle morphology may be critical because of its impact on segmental stability and control of the lumbar spine in the subset of patients with clinical lumbar segmental instability (LSI). The purpose of this study was to compare lumbar muscle morphology in CNLBP patients with clinical LSI, CNLBP patients without clinical LSI. This case-control study included 30 patients with CNLBP (15 with clinical LSI and 15 without clinical LSI) and 15 subjects without LBP. Axial magnetic resonance images from the L2 to S1 lumbar levels were used to evaluate the morphology of the lumbar muscles. A significant increase in the muscle-to-fat infiltration index and a significant decrease in the relative muscle cross-sectional area (rmCSA) of the multifidus muscle at the L3-L4 to L5-S1 levels were observed in both CNLBP groups compared to the control group (p