Comparison of spinal column alignment and autonomic nervous activity using the intersegmental tenderness test in the segment above.
Masaki Aino, Shinichiro Oka, Koutarou Haruguchi and 3 others
PMID 34393365WHAT IT FOUND
In healthy young men, tenderness on pressing the spine at Th5-9 was associated with lower spinal tilt angles and reduced heart rate variability.
This suggests that segmental spinal tenderness may correlate with autonomic nervous system changes.
Key findings
01Participants with tenderness at the Th5-9 spinal segment showed significantly lower sagittal spine tilt angles at Th1/2, Th12/L1, and L2/3 compared to those without tenderness.
02Those with Th5-9 tenderness had significantly lower autonomic nervous activity, measured by Total Power, Low Frequency, and Coefficient of Variation of RR intervals.
03Tenderness at the upper thoracic segments (Th1-4) was associated with a lower tilt angle at the Th1/2 level.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTs
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What it does not show
The study was conducted on healthy young males with no history of back pain or neurological disorders, so findings may not generalize to patients with existing spinal conditions. The sample size was small (30 participants). The study did not evaluate head or pelvic posture, nor did it assess muscle function of the erector spinae, which are known factors in spinal alignment. The cross-sectional design prevents establishing causality between tenderness, alignment, and autonomic activity.
Declared interests
The study was supported by the Department of Physical Therapy of International University of Health and Welfare, and the authors declared no conflicts of interest.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that spinal tenderness causes autonomic dysfunction or that treating the tenderness will normalize heart rate variability; this study only shows an association in healthy young men.