Comparison of curved angles in spinal alignment between patientswith chronic pain disease and physically unimpaired persons.
1Koichi Wakimoto, 1Toshifumi Dakeshita, 1Toyoto Tatejima, 2Kazuyoshi Sakamoto
1Seisen Clinic of Orthopedics, Shizuoka, Japan; email: kw@seisen.info
2
Center of Promotion of Alliances with Region, Industry and Government,
The University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo, JapanSUMMARY
The purpose is to establish an objective index to clarify
chronic pain disease by comparing with the difference ofthe curved angle in spinal alignment between patientswith chronic pain disease and physically unimpairedpersons.
A total of 40 adult male subjects constituted this study.
There were 20 physically unimpaired adults and 20
patients with chronic pain. The spinal curved angles are
estimated by multiple regression analysis with use ofdata of distance with nine items of length and width, andthe spinal curved angles are also evaluated by the actual
measured value of curved angles using X rays.
The results of multiple regression equation for bothpatients with chronic pain disease and physicallyunimpaired persons showed a significant difference forcurved angles of lordosis of thoracical vertebrae, butthey showed no significant difference for curved angles
of kyphosis of lumber vertebrae. X rays also showedsimilar results to multiple regression analysis. There wasno significant difference in both results.
This study revealed that the patients with chronic pain
disease had decreased curved angles of lordosis ofthoracical vertebrae.
It also revealed that the method with multiple regression
equation was useful to estimate the spinal curved angles.

with chronic pain disease and physically unimpaired
persons.

METHODS
A total of 40 adult male subjects constituted this study.
There were 20 physically unimpaired adults (mean age,30.0±6.3 years) and 20 patients with chronic pain (meanage, 32.4±4.8 years).
The spinal curved angles are estimated by multiple
regression analysis with use of data of distance with nine
items of length and width, and the spinal curved angles
are also evaluated by the actual measured value ofcurved angles using X rays(Table 1). The results of theestimated spinal curved angles and the angles by X rays
are compared. The extracted data of both patients withchronic pain disease and physically unimpaired persons
were compared.
The Welch’s T-test was used to analyze the data with asignificance level of 0.05.

INTRODUCTION
In clinical diagnosis, we have experienced many
hardships that the treatment of chronic pain used to bedifficult and also have seen that the spinal curved angles
in the patients are different from the angles of originalphysiological curve of physically unimpaired persons.
The obvious cause of chronic pain disease is not stillfound. The symptomatic therapy has been mainly taken.
Therefore, the main approach and treatment for thechronic pain disease have not established.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The results of multiple regression equation for bothpatients with chronic pain disease and physicallyunimpaired persons showed a significant difference forcurved angles of lordosis of thoracical vertebrae, butthey showed no significant difference for curved anglesof kyphosis of lumber vertebrae . In the results of X rays,
a significant difference for curved angles of lordosis ofthoracical vertebrae for both patients with chronic paindisease and physically unimpaired persons were also
found, but no significant difference for curved angles of
kyphosis of lumber vertebrae was found (Table 2).There
was no significant difference in both results.

The purpose is to establish an objective index to clarify
chronic pain disease by comparing with the difference ofthe curved angle in spinal alignment between patients

It is suggested that the curved angles of lordosis ofthoracical vertebrae may be an objective index to clarify
chronic pain disease and may be a factor to causechronic pain disease. The curved angles are able to be
estimated by multiple regression equation with distanceinformation in spine.

CONCLUSIONSThis study revealed that the patients with chronic pain
disease had decreased curved angles of lordosis ofthoracical vertebrae. Therefore, finding the presence orabsence of the curved angles of lordosis of thoracicalvertebrae indicates the possible factors of chronic pain
disease.
It also revealed that the method with multiple regression
equation was useful to estimate the spinal curved angles.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This study was supported in part by Center of Promotionof Alliances with Region, Industry and Government, The
University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo, Japan.
We would like to express our gratitude to Dr Kazuyoshi
Sakamoto and all stuff of The University of ElectroCommunications, and all chronic pain patients who
participated in this study in spite of their painful
conditions.

REFERENCES
1. K.Wakimoto,et al: On evaluation of curve angle oflordosis and kyphosis in vertebrae estimated from
both
length and width of vertebrae for normal adults. The
XVIII Congress of the International Society ofElectrophysiology and Kinesiology, Aalborg,
Denmark, 2010.

Table 1: Nine Items of length and width used for evaluation of curved angles of vertebrae.

Table 2: Comparison of curved angle in spinal alignment between patients with chronic pain disease and physicallyunimpaired persons.