AB1115\u2005OBESITY AND FLAT VERTEBRAE

Abstract

Background Spine is a mechanical structure, in a young and healthy individual, under a radiological focus, disposes their vertebral bodies in harmony with their stature, and progressively increasing in magnitude from the cervical to the lumbar spine, in a range of vertical growth that it can exceed the horizontal (1). It is postulated that the important obesity in the early stages of life, could modify the vertebral parameters by skeletal overloads, but the problem is that the current vertebral indexes do not measure a relation of the person height with his vertebra (2). Objectives Thus, to check whether the childhood obesity could modify the vertebral parameters, or it is accepted that it entails a loss of equivalent stature, and in this case would be necessary a study comparative of average height, or whether the harmony of the individual is accepted, it would be necessary to create an index that combine these variables to objectify if its value is a constant, and thus, eliminate the ambiguity of the observer. Methods We selected a population of obese (BMI≥35), both sex, between 20 and 55 years old, in bariatric surgery protocol, with a significant obesity in their development. Was excluded any cause that could produce vertebral flattening. As a control group, was included any patient that went to outpatient visit of rheumatology, and which met the inclusion and exclusion criteria above, except obesity. As variables, sex, age, body mass index (BMI), and with a chest lateral plate, not rotated, and in the eighth dorsal vertebra, we calculate his length (LVD8) and his height (HVD8), measured in mm. Figure 1. Finally, we applied a comparative study of average of height and vertebral index (VI) results: VI = 10 x LVD8/(HVD8 x stature) Results 90 patients were analyzed. 20 patients in the study group (22.2%): 48.1% female, 48.6 years old, 38.2 BMI, and VI 11.6 Meters-1 And 70 patients in the control group (77.8%): 51.1% females 45.15 yers old, 26.2 BMI, and VI 11.2 Meters-1 The comparative analysis of averages does not show any significant differences in the index or in the stature of these patients. Conclusion It is a small study, and according to height or the created index, it does not seem that obesity in development modifies the overall height or the vertebral parameters. In addition, the index gives a stable value regarding the sex of both populations in the eighth dorsal vertebra. References [1] White AA, Panjabi MM. Clinical Biomechanics of the Spine. 2nd ed, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins, 1990. [2] Gooding CA, Neuhause EBD (1965) Growth and developedment of the vertebral body in the presence and absence of normal stress. AJR 93:388. [3] Veiga C RM. Vértebra plana. Revisión de concepto y aproximación diagnóstica. Semin Fund Esp Reumatol. 2009;10(2):56-63. Disclosure of Interests None declared