The Shape of Anterior-Posterior Curvatures of the Spine in Athletes Practising Selected Sports

Introduction. Practising sport at the professional level brings about considerable spinal loads. As a result of an intensive effort, the adaptation abilities of vertebrae, intervertebral discs, ligaments and muscles decrease, which, in turn, influences the size of physiological curvatures of the spine and at the same time the quality of body posture. The aim of the work was to evaluate the shape of anterior-posterior curvatures of the spine and to define the frequency of occurrence of body posture types in athletes practising selected sports. Material and methods. The research was conducted among 46 athletes from the following sections: athletics, handball, volleyball and taekwondo. Inclination angles of the curvatures of the spine were defined with the use of a posturometer: α angle (upper-thoracic segment), β angle (thoracic-lumbar segment), γ angle (lumbar-sacral segment) as well as the level of thoracic kyphosis (χ) and lumbar lordosis (λ). Every athlete's body posture type was defined. Results. It was revealed that in the shape of anterior-posterior curvatures of the spine in the examined athletes the level of thoracic kyphosis was higher than the level of lumbar lordosis. In all the athletes the biggest values were observed in the inclination of the upper-thoracic segment, whereas the lowest ones (except for taekwondo competitors) in the inclination of the lumbar-sacral segment. The most common types of body posture were kyphotic and balanced types. No type-III kyphosis and type-III lordosis were observed. Athletes practising selected sports generally had a proper body posture. An improper posture, especially a wrong posture, was observed in few athletes. Conclusion. The specificity of movements performed during the training applied in a particular sport may influence the shape of anterior-posterior curvatures of the spine and thus the type of body posture.