THE ASSOCIATION BETWEEN LUMBAR LORDOSIS AND FUNCTIONAL PERFORMANCE IN CHILDREN WITH DUCHENNE MUSCULAR DYSTROPHY.

TURKEY; NEW York (State)

Purpose: The aims of this study were to compare the lumbar lordosis values measured with flexible ruler between healthy peers and children with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD) and to investigate the relationship between lumbar lordosis values and functional performance in children with DMD. Material and Methods: The study included 20 children with DMD (median age: 8.29 years) and 10 healthy peers (median age: 7.96 years). Lumbar lordosis values and postural alignment were assessed using a flexible ruler and New York Posture Rating (NYPR). Functional performance was evaluated with the 32-item Motor Function Measure and timed performance tests. Results: The demographic characteristics such as age and body mass index were similar for both the children with DMD and the healthy peer group (p>0.05). A higher degree of lumbar lordosis was determined in the children with DMD compared to the healthy peers (median angle: 46.58° vs. 36.10°) (p<0.001). The children with DMD had greater disturbance according to the NYPR (p=0.002). Both the degree of lumbar lordosis and NYPR scores were moderately to strongly related to the functional performance parameters (p<0.05, rs:0.5 - 0.8 and -0.5 - -0.8). Conclusion: Assessment of lumbar lordosis using a flexible ruler in DMD may be an alternative method to differentiate between children with DMD and healthy peers, and between children with DMD at different functional levels. This study may provide additional evidence regarding the possible relationships between postural alignment and motor function parameters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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