Age-related decline in mid-back and low back muscle mass and quality is not associated with kyphosis

Researchers from Hebrew SeniorLife's Institute for Aging Research, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, That National Heart Lung and Blood Institute's Framingham Heart Study and Boston University have found that poor back muscle quality is not associated with worsening kyphosis (forward curvature or "hunch" of the upper spine) in older adults. The study was published today in the Journal of Gerontology: Medical Sciences.

Lead author Amanda Lorbergs, Ph.D, former post-doctoral fellow at IFAR explains, "We used computed tomography (CT) scans to measure spinal curvature in 1087 men and women (aged 50-85 years to determine whether age-related decline in trunk muscle size and quality contribute to the worsening of kyphosis. We found that adults with smaller and fat-infiltrated muscles in the mid-back, but not the low back, had a more accentuated forward curvature of the spine. Six years later, the age-related decline in mid-back and low back muscle mass and quality was not associated with kyphosis progression."

The results of this study have led scientists to believe that further research is needed to understand how targeted resistance exercises can modify muscle properties and contribute to preventing kyphosis progression.