Relationships between mobility of axial structures and physical performance.
OBJECTIVE
Many day-to-day activities require bending and twisting motions of the spine (axial mobility). Because little is known about the relationship between axial mobility and physical performance, this investigation explored these relationships.


METHODS
Thirty-one men and 26 women, aged 20 to 91 years (chi=58.4, SD=24.4), participated.


METHODS
Subjects were assigned to one of three age groups: 20 to 40 years, 60 to 74 years, or 75 years and older. Five sets of variables were identified and measured: cervical, lumbar, sagittal configuration (ie, kyphosis, lordosis), combined spinal motion, and physical performance.


RESULTS
A multivariate analysis of variance revealed age effects for all sets of variables; a post hoc analysis of variance revealed age effects for all variables within the sets. Canonical correlations, controlling for age, demonstrated associations between the cervical and combined spinal motion sets of variables and between the combined spinal motion and physical performance sets of variables.


CONCLUSIONS
This investigation demonstrated an age effect for selected measures of axial mobility, sagittal configuration, and physical performance thought to depend on axial motion. Controlling for age, the results also demonstrated associations between measures of axial mobility and physical performance.
Schenkman
M
M
Graduate Program in Physical Therapy, Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA.
Shipp
K M
KM
Chandler
J
J
Studenski
S A
SA
Kuchibhatla
M
M
D000328:Adult; D000367:Age Factors; D000368:Aged; D000369:Aged, 80 and over; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009068:Movement; D005082:Physical Exertion / Q000502:physiology*; D010809:Physical Fitness / Q000502:physiology*; D016059:Range of Motion, Articular; D013131:Spine / Q000502:physiology*