Design, Implementation and Preliminary Testing of a Novel Orthosis for Reducing Erector Spinae Muscle Activity, and Improving Balance Control for Hyperkyphotic Elderly Subjects

Background: Aging often results in thoracic kyphosis and adverse postural changes. This may interfere with physiologic activity of paraspinal muscles. Few styles of spinal orthosis have been already used to reduce thoracic kyphosis. This paper describes the development of a novel orthosis, which is designed based on the anatomy of the back muscles. This novel orthosis may potentiate muscle activity and balance control among older hyper kyphotic subjects. Objectives: The object of this study was to design and preliminary testing of a new orthosis to potentiate muscle activity and balance control among older hyper kyphotic subjects.Material and Methods: In this quasi-experimental study, a new postural control orthosis with a textile band structure was designed to provide an additional support for spine and muscles of the back. The functional impact of this orthosis was evaluated in six older hyper-kyphotic subjects. According to the results, the paraspinal muscles activity and balance control were significantly improved. Results: The RMS sEMG of the lumbar and thoracic erector spinae muscles reduced significantly (p<0.05), and a significant improvement (p<0.05) was observed in the balance test when patients put on the novel orthosis (p<0.05). Conclusion: The new orthosis can considerably improve the paraspinal muscles activity at both the upper and lower lumbar levels. It can also recover balance control among elderly subjects.