Abdominal Adiposity Increases Lordosis and Doubles the Risk of Low Back Pain

Abstract

Vertebral disorders have significant health and economic impacts, and due to aging and current lifestyle habits, there is a trend toward their increase. Obesity and the alignment of vertebral curvatures can be associated with back pain. Objective: This study aims to analyze whether general and abdominal obesity are associated with cervical, dorsal, and lumbar vertebral pain as well as increased or decreased values of cervical, dorsal, and lumbar vertebral curvatures. Methodology: Body composition, degree of vertebral curvature, and the perception of cervical, dorsal, and lumbar pain were evaluated in a study population of 301 people (>18 years old). Linear and logistic regression analyses were performed to evaluate the influence of several variables of body composition on vertebral angles and cervical, dorsal, and lumbar pain. Results: Lumbar pain was the most prevalent (66.1%), mainly affecting women (70.9%). They were also shown to have greater lumbar angles (p < 0.001). The degrees of lumbar curvature increased, as did the BMI, waist circumference, and waist-to-height ratio. Cervical and dorsal curvatures were increased by all the variables of adiposity and abdominal adiposity. It was found that people with abdominal obesity carried twice the risk of lower back pain than those without abdominal obesity (OR = 2.172, p < 0.05). In addition, an increased lumbar angle was related to an increased risk of low back pain (OR = 1.031, p < 0.05). Cervical pain, on the other hand, was associated with the waist-height index (OR = 0.948, p <0.01). Conclusions: This study shows that increased lumbar curvature and abdominal obesity may be risk factors for lower back pain. In addition, it shows an association between the amount of body and abdominal fat in relation to the degree of curvature of the spine in the sagittal plane. Investigating the effect of obesity on vertebral morphology and musculoskeletal disorders makes it possible to prescribe interventions and therapeutic strategies.

Prevalence and associated factors of low back pain among taxi drivers in Gondar City, Northwest Ethiopia: a community-based cross-sectional study

“…This finding is in agreement with a previous study conducted in Iran, Zahedan city, which revealed that fat drivers with high BMI were found associated with the low level of lower back pain in lower back regions 38. However, there is evidence that indicates a strong association between abdominal obesity and LBP as central obesity increases lordosis and doubles the risk of LBP 39 40. There is also evidence that overweight/obesity is a risk factor for LBP41–44 However, other literature reported as the association of overweight/obesity with LBP remains controversial and inconsistent result 45.…”

Examining the influence of body fat distribution on standing balance and functional performance in overweight female patients with degenerative lumbar disease

“…In our study, the android-type overweight group demonstrated a significantly greater lumbar Cobb angle than the normal weight group. These findings are consistent with previous research, which has shown that excessive body weight and adiposity in the abdominal region have a significant impact on the lumbar lordosis curve (Saludes et al, 2022). An increase in body fat percentage in the abdominal region may increase burden on the lumbar spine, shift the CoM forward and increase lumbar lordosis (Romero-Vargas et al, 2013;Sheng et al, 2017).…”