EVALUATION OF THE EFFECT OF MICRODISCECTOMY AT THE LOWER LUMBAR LEVELS ON SAGITTAL VERTICAL AXIS AND SAGITTAL BALANCE IN A SERIES OF 102 BODY BUILDERS: SPORTS HEALTH IMPLICATIONS

Abstract

Individuals involved in body building frequently experience sagittal imbalance, a prevalent issue observed in the spinal setting. Nevertheless, there has been a lack of adequate evidence to enhance the understanding of the matter among sports organisations, coaches, and body builders. Furthermore, individuals diagnosed with lumbar disc herniation (LDH) who participate in body building have shown a high prevalence of this issue. Therefore, microdiscectomy is a highly efficacious surgical intervention for the treatment of this medical issue. The primary objective of this research is to assess the impact of microdiscectomy on the sagittal vertical axis and sagittal balance in a cohort of 102 body builders with sagittal imbalance in Turkey. The study aims to shed light on the significant consequences for sports health in this setting. The study examined several spinopelvic characteristics, including sacral slope (SS), pelvis incidence (PI), pelvis tilt (PT), thoracic kyphosis (TK), sagittal vertical axis (SVA), and lumbar lordosis (LL). However, we only considered the degree of trunk shift to assess coronal alignment. Furthermore, the researchers also documented the "electromyography (EMG) index’’. The findings derived from this investigation demonstrated that all participants successfully regained their sagittal and coronal balances after undergoing discectomy. A notable disparity was noted in the sagittal vertical axis (SVA) across the entire spinal column, both prior to (11.7 ± 6.7) and after the surgical procedure (0.51 ± 2.7) (p < 0.050) Significant outcomes were observed in both the parameters related to the pelvic region and the spine. Following the surgical intervention, there was a notable decrease in the angle of TK, namely from 24.8 ± 11.4 to 22.1 ± 9.7 (p < 0.050). Simultaneously, the angle of LL exhibited a notable enhancement from an initial value of 25.4 ± 14.1 to 42.5 ± 10.4 following the surgical intervention (p < 0.050). However, following the surgical procedure, there was a noticeable increase in the average angle of SS, which rose from 25.7 ± 9.6 to 30.41 ± 8.8 (p < 0.050). The angle of PT exhibited a drop from 20.8 ± 7.9 to 15.7 ± 5.6, indicating statistically significant results (p < 0.050). Therefore, the findings of this study demonstrate the efficacy of micro-discectomy in ameliorating sagittal imbalance among body builders diagnosed with LDH following surgical intervention. This study has also yielded valuable insights into the sports' health implications for enhancing the overall performance of body builders. It has achieved this by implementing diverse rehabilitation protocols and ensuring the long-term monitoring of athletes with LDH who are undergoing treatment.