Muscle oxygenation and intramuscular pressure related to posture and load in back muscles

BACKGROUND CONTEXT: There is little information about the simultaneous changes of intramuscular pressure (IMP) and oxygen saturation (StO(2)) of the paraspinal muscle under various conditions of posture and load. PURPOSE: To measure simultaneously and compare IMP and StO(2) across a range of static trunk postures commonly observed during normal work tasks. STUDY DESIGN: A prospective study using a repeated-measure design in clinical setting. PATIENT SAMPLE: Sixteen healthy young men with no history of back pain. OUTCOME MEASURES: Simultaneous measurements of IMP by a flexible slit catheter and StO(2) by near infrared spectroscopy of the multifidus muscle were performed. METHODS: The two measures were taken in six static posture tasks: standing upright and bending forward with and without load (20 kg), bending backward and during a sustained isometric contraction (ie, Sorensen test). To compare the influence of the tasks on IMP and StO(2) variables, a one-way variance analysis with repeated measures was used. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient (rho) was determined between the two variables for each posture task. RESULTS: We observed only a moderate but significant correlation between IMP and StO(2) values in upright standing and a trend in bending forward positions with load (p<.05). IMP increased in the bending backward position and showed the greatest increase during the Sorensen test. StO(2) decreased significantly during the Sorensen test, in the bending forward position with and without load bearing but did not in bending backward. CONCLUSION: The simultaneous recording of IMP and StO(2) of the multifidus muscle allows a deeper insight of physiological events during various trunk postures. In the mutifidus muscle, there is no evident linear relationship between IMP and StO(2), values in various static postures of the trunk in young males. This preliminary study shows that IMP may play a role on StO(2) only in some circumstances, such as a prolonged endurance test or in a bending forward position with a significant load bearing. (C) 2009 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.