Effect of Body Size, Body Mass Index and Waist-Hip Ratioon Spinal Curvature: A Study of Adult Males in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

This study was conducted using the vertebral column, to determine the Lumbosacral angle (LSA) of non-obese male subjects and evaluate its relationship to selected subject specific variables. After obtaining institutional approval, lateral radiographs of one hundred and forty-two informed healthy male volunteers aged 18-60 were studied using Ferguson's method, and analyzed with respect to age, waist hip ratio (WHR) and body mass index (BMI). Mean (SE) Lumbosacral angle of the sample population was 34.060 ± 0.560, mean body weight was 70.34 ± 1.02Kg, and average BMI was 24. 64 ± 0.38Kgm-2. Angle values were observed to increase with age up to 32years, followed by a sinusoidal increase and decrease pattern thereafter. Significant correlations were observed between LSA and Body weight as well as between LSA and BMI (p<0.05). The Lumbosacral angle of males in Port- Harcourt, South South Nigeria is within the range of literature derived measurement values world-wide, but lower than the average reported from previous studies on other Nigerian populations.

Key Words: Lumbosacral angle, male, Nigerians, spines, Ferguson's method