Sagittal Imbalance

Sagittal spinal imbalance may be caused by orthopedic problems, compression of the neural structures of the spinal canal, and pain syndrome (functional imbalance). Sagittal imbalance in combination with appropriate clinical symptoms may require surgical correction of the spine with fixation. However, in some cases, patients experience spontaneous correction of sagittal balance after isolated decompression without any correction or fusion. Therefore, it is necessary to clarify whether isolated decompression may cause spontaneous correction of sagittal imbalance in patients with degenerative lumbar stenosis.

Evaluate surgical treatment outcomes and identify best practice guidelines for complex adult spinal deformity (ASD) patients treated with minimally invasive approach, including radiographic and clinical outcomes, surgical and postoperative complications, risk factors for and revision surgery rates, and the role of standard work to improve patient outcomes and reduce surgical and postoperative complications.

Evaluate surgical treatment outcomes and identify best practice guidelines for complex adult spinal deformity (ASD) patients, including radiographic and clinical outcomes, surgical and postoperative complications, risk factors for and revision surgery rates, and the role of standard work to improve patient outcomes and reduce surgical and postoperative complications.

This cross-sectional observational study aims to quantitatively compare three-dimensional gait parameters, surface electromyography (EMG) patterns, and radiological parameters among patients with different degenerative spinal conditions-including lumbar disc herniation (LDH), lumbar spinal stenosis (LSS), lumbar sagittal imbalance (LSI), degenerative lumbar scoliosis (DLS), and cervical spondylotic myelopathy (CSM)-alongside a healthy control group. The analysis focuses on spatiotemporal gait characteristics (step length, stride length, cadence), lower limb kinematics and kinetics (hip/knee/ankle joint angles, moments, and powers during stance and swing phases), and surface EMG amplitudes (thoracic erector spinae, multifidus, gluteus maximus, and rectus abdominis muscles) during standardized walking tasks. Additionally, radiological parameters (e.g., pelvic incidence-lumbar lordosis mismatch, C2-C7 sagittal vertical axis, coronal Cobb angle) will be correlated with gait and muscle activation deviations. The study employs motion capture systems, force plates, and high-density EMG to objectively differentiate disease-specific movement impairments. Findings from this study may establish biomechanical and neuromuscular signatures for each degenerative condition, providing a framework for personalized rehabilitation strategies, gait retraining, and surgical outcome assessment in spinal disorders. Comparative analysis with healthy controls will further elucidate pathological alterations in gait and muscle recruitment patterns caused by degenerative spinal diseases.

Surgical outcomes, including radiographic outcomes, patient-reported outcomes, postoperative complications, and revision surgery rates, were compared in patients with adult spinal deformity who underwent correction surgery with reference to our pelvic incidence-dependent (PI-dependent) clustering of sagittal spinal alignment and existing standards (sagittal age-adjusted score \[SAAS\], global alignment and proportion \[GAP\] score, and Roussouly classification). Our findings may provide tangible guidance for surgical decision-making in ASD.