The Spinal Curvature of Three Different Sitting Positions Analysed in an Open MRI Scanner

Sitting is the most frequently performed posture of everyday life. Biomechanical interactions with office chairs have therefore a long-term effect on our musculoskeletal system and ultimately on our health and wellbeing. This paper highlights the kinematic effect of office chairs on the spinal colum...

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Main Authors: Daniel Baumgartner, Roland Zemp, Renate List, Mirjam Stoop, Jaroslav Naxera, Jean Pierre Elsig, Silvio Lorenzetti
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2012-01-01
Series:The Scientific World Journal
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/2012/184016
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author Daniel Baumgartner
Roland Zemp
Renate List
Mirjam Stoop
Jaroslav Naxera
Jean Pierre Elsig
Silvio Lorenzetti
author_facet Daniel Baumgartner
Roland Zemp
Renate List
Mirjam Stoop
Jaroslav Naxera
Jean Pierre Elsig
Silvio Lorenzetti
author_sort Daniel Baumgartner
collection DOAJ
description Sitting is the most frequently performed posture of everyday life. Biomechanical interactions with office chairs have therefore a long-term effect on our musculoskeletal system and ultimately on our health and wellbeing. This paper highlights the kinematic effect of office chairs on the spinal column and its single segments. Novel chair concepts with multiple degrees of freedom provide enhanced spinal mobility. The angular changes of the spinal column in the sagittal plane in three different sitting positions (forward inclined, reclined, and upright) for six healthy subjects (aged 23 to 45 years) were determined using an open magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. An MRI-compatible and commercially available office chair was adapted for use in the scanner. The midpoint coordinates of the vertebral bodies, the wedge angles of the intervertebral discs, and the lumbar lordotic angle were analysed. The mean lordotic angles were 16.0±8.5∘ (mean ± standard deviation) in a forward inclined position, 24.7±8.3∘ in an upright position, and 28.7±8.1∘ in a reclined position. All segments from T10-T11 to L5-S1 were involved in movement during positional changes, whereas the range of motion in the lower lumbar segments was increased in comparison to the upper segments.
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issn 1537-744X
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spelling doaj-art-9fd908e603d44e6d888c811b243fdd2e2025-08-20T02:20:51ZengWileyThe Scientific World Journal1537-744X2012-01-01201210.1100/2012/184016184016The Spinal Curvature of Three Different Sitting Positions Analysed in an Open MRI ScannerDaniel Baumgartner0Roland Zemp1Renate List2Mirjam Stoop3Jaroslav Naxera4Jean Pierre Elsig5Silvio Lorenzetti6Institute for Biomechanics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitute for Biomechanics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitute for Biomechanics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, SwitzerlandInstitute for Biomechanics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, SwitzerlandRöntgeninstitut Zürich-Altstetten, Zurich, SwitzerlandSpine Surgery, 8700 Küsnacht, SwitzerlandInstitute for Biomechanics, ETH Zurich, Zurich, SwitzerlandSitting is the most frequently performed posture of everyday life. Biomechanical interactions with office chairs have therefore a long-term effect on our musculoskeletal system and ultimately on our health and wellbeing. This paper highlights the kinematic effect of office chairs on the spinal column and its single segments. Novel chair concepts with multiple degrees of freedom provide enhanced spinal mobility. The angular changes of the spinal column in the sagittal plane in three different sitting positions (forward inclined, reclined, and upright) for six healthy subjects (aged 23 to 45 years) were determined using an open magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. An MRI-compatible and commercially available office chair was adapted for use in the scanner. The midpoint coordinates of the vertebral bodies, the wedge angles of the intervertebral discs, and the lumbar lordotic angle were analysed. The mean lordotic angles were 16.0±8.5∘ (mean ± standard deviation) in a forward inclined position, 24.7±8.3∘ in an upright position, and 28.7±8.1∘ in a reclined position. All segments from T10-T11 to L5-S1 were involved in movement during positional changes, whereas the range of motion in the lower lumbar segments was increased in comparison to the upper segments.http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/2012/184016
spellingShingle Daniel Baumgartner
Roland Zemp
Renate List
Mirjam Stoop
Jaroslav Naxera
Jean Pierre Elsig
Silvio Lorenzetti
The Spinal Curvature of Three Different Sitting Positions Analysed in an Open MRI Scanner
The Scientific World Journal
title The Spinal Curvature of Three Different Sitting Positions Analysed in an Open MRI Scanner
title_full The Spinal Curvature of Three Different Sitting Positions Analysed in an Open MRI Scanner
title_fullStr The Spinal Curvature of Three Different Sitting Positions Analysed in an Open MRI Scanner
title_full_unstemmed The Spinal Curvature of Three Different Sitting Positions Analysed in an Open MRI Scanner
title_short The Spinal Curvature of Three Different Sitting Positions Analysed in an Open MRI Scanner
title_sort spinal curvature of three different sitting positions analysed in an open mri scanner
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1100/2012/184016
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