Lumbar extension in Duchenne muscular dystrophy: effect on lateral curvature.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the hypothesis that a lumbar pad producing extension of the lumbar spine is of value in posture support seats for children with Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Our method was to establish whether or not an increase in lumbar lordosis produced any increase in resistance to static lateral curvature of the supine lumbar spine. Nine boys with Duchenne muscular dystrophy were studied at an age when they were about to go into a wheelchair or had recently become wheelchair mobile. In each case the child lay supine on low-friction material on an x-ray table while the spine was flexed first to the right and then to the left, with and without a lumbar pad, by a predetermined force. The degree of lateral curvature was measured from anteroposterior radiographs. While lateral forces were applied when the boys were supine rather than seated, the results failed to show a difference in curvature with or without the lumbar pad.