Purpose The purpose was to investigate the changes of the psoas major muscles (PM) cross-sectional area (CSA) and fat infiltration in the PM and to investigate the association between the morphology of the PM and expression of the degenerative changes of lumbar spine in patients with low back pain (LBP). Methods T2-weighted scans for measurements of the CSA and analysis of fat infiltration were performed on 42 patients and 49 controls using a 1.5 Tesla MR system. For a quantitative analysis of fat tissue infiltration a 4-grade visual scale was used. Results Patients had bigger CSA of the PM than controls at the levels of L3/L4 and L4/L5 intervertebral disc (P \ 0.05). Patients with apparent degenerative changes of the lumbar spine had smaller CSA of the PM compared to the patients without apparent changes at the levels of L3/L4 and L4/L5 (P \ 0.05). At the levels of L4/L5 and L5/S1 patients with present Modic changes in the lumbar vertebral bodies showed smaller CSA of the PM compared to the patients without Modic changes (P \ 0.05). However, CSA of the PM in the patients with degenerative changes of lumbar spine and Modic changes was still bigger than the one of the controls. At all analyzed levels correlation between CSAs of the PM and fat infiltration of the lumbar paraspinal muscles was negative. Conclusion Results suggest increased activity of the PM in LBP patients but PM also remains active regardless of the presence of degenerative and Modic changes of the lumbar spine.

The iliopsoas of the rat is composed of two muscles - the psoas major muscle and the iliacus muscle. The psoas major muscle arises from all the lumbar vertebrae and the iliacus muscle from the fifth and sixth lumbar vertebrae and ilium. Their common insertion point is the lesser trochanter of the femur, and their common action is the lateral rotation of the femur and flexion of the hip joint. Unlike humans, the rat is a quadruped and only occasionally rises up on its hind legs. Therefore, it is expected that the fibre type composition of the rat iliopsoas muscle will be different than that of humans. The iliopsoas muscle of the rat is generally considered to be a fast muscle. However, previous studies of the fibre type composition of the rat psoas muscle showed different results. Moreover, very little is known about the composition of the rat iliacus muscle. The aim of our study was to examine the fibre type composition of the rat iliopsoas muscle in order to better understand the complex function of the listed muscle. The psoas major muscle was examined segmentally at four different levels of its origin. Type I, IIA, IIB and IIX muscle fibres were typed using monoclonal antibodies for myosin heavy chain identification. The percentage of muscle fibre types and muscle fibre cross-sectional areas were calculated. In our study we showed that in the rat iliopsoas muscle both the iliacus and the psoas major muscles had a predominance of fast muscle fibre types, with the highest percentage of the fastest IIB muscle fibres. Also, the IIB muscle fibres showed the largest cross-sectional area (CSA) in both muscles. As well, the psoas major muscle showed segmental differences of fibre type composition. Our results showed changes in percentages, as well as the CSAs of muscle fibre types in cranio-caudal direction. The most significant changes were visible in type IIB muscle fibres, where there was a decrease of percentages and the CSAs from the cranial towards the caudal part of the muscle. From our results it is evident that the rat iliopsoas muscle has a heterogeneous composition and is composed of all four muscle fibre types. Primarily, it is a fast, dynamic muscle with a predominance of fast type IIB muscle fibres with the largest CSAs. The composition of the rat psoas major muscles changes in a cranio-caudal direction, thus pointing to a more postural role of the caudal part of the muscle.

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